


Prologue: The Origin of Ryuu

by Code_Aria_3789



Series: Of Swords and Skates [1]
Category: Sword Art Online, Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Relationships, Confident Katsuki Yuuri, Friendship, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov - Freeform, Multi, Other, eventually, much later
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-08
Updated: 2017-05-08
Packaged: 2018-10-16 05:06:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 25,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10564224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Code_Aria_3789/pseuds/Code_Aria_3789
Summary: His progress wasn’t going fast enough. Maybe he wasn’t good enough after all. Maybe he just needed a break like Minako-sensei said. Yuuri stared at the page on his laptop screen for a few minutes as the timeline drew closer before deciding.“It’s not like it will make a difference if I play or not since I am not making any progress  anyway. If I don’t get one, then it was not meant to be and I’ll just keep practicing.”Yuuri quickly filled out the information needed to be a Beta-tester for Sword Art Online, unknowingly changing his fate forever.





	1. A Glimpse of The Future

No one knew where the figure dancing on the ice came from. He simply appeared this season, silently and without fanfare, another nameless skater added to the already numerous amount of hopeful dreamers who aspired to one day stand among the great. No one paid him any mind. Surely, if he was worth watching he would have debuted long before he was nearly 18. And if he had won anything of mention before this, then surely someone would have known who he was.

 

Truly, there was nothing remarkable about the young man. He was small, as is typical from those of his heritage, however even then he was more on the lithe side of the spectrum, slim with every bit of his musculature hard won and fought for. He stood a few centimeters shorter than one would expect of someone his age. He had clear, slightly tan skin and large brown eyes. His near jet black hair was slicked back, a few choice strands let loose to fall forward onto his forehead. A quiet and calm atmosphere exuded from him, not overpowering or confident but there nonetheless. He melted into surroundings, not cowering to the rising excitement and pressure in the air nor posturing himself to discourage those around him. He simply existed. All-in-all, he was average, forgettable...

 

_...Until he stepped onto the ice, that is..._

 

Those who would look back on this day and try to describe what they saw would have a hard time coming to a conclusive story of the events that followed. They would be able to tell you which jumps he performed and the GOE scores after the fact but nothing more. No one would be able to name a feeling or word that could properly illustrate the performance of the once thought common man. No one would be able to pinpoint when the crowd fell silent, when their breath became locked in their chest, when they began to tremble with the force of unknown emotions...when they forgot they were watching a man and not a divine force of nature.

 

As the once-man stepped out onto the ice his entire being changed. His back straight and unbent, his movements purposeful and confident. He was still quite, but not in the same way. He didn’t merely exist now. No, now he demanded your attention--drawing your eyes until you were hanging off every movement of his body--and when his eyes swept through the crowd, somehow it felt as though he saw you and knew you all at once. His eyes were no longer merely brown, but rather burning embers of molten bronze, streaks of gold entering and leaving as the lights above danced across his face. His form fitting costume of blues, silvers, and blacks simmered in the light, spiraling around his body in a windswept manner.

 

His presence drew your attention in a way that was hard to describe. He was the single leaf that fell in a once still pond, causing ripples of emotion and anticipatory silence to permeate the stadium. He was the calm before the storm that you could feel building in the air. As he circled the rink once, swift and silent as the wind across an open prairie, he traveled with the all the drawing and destructive force of a tornado.

 

Gracefully, he took his starting position in the center of the rink, head bowed down and arms resting loosely at his sides. Then, the beginning notes of his Short Program began to play. The soft sounds of a single piano sang out as the figure raised his head heavenward, face open and bared with the innocence of a child seeing the world for the first time. Spirally backward in a show of gracefully steps and movements, the figure began to dance across the ice. Every movement, every sweep of his arms and legs was soft and controlled, weightless and heavy all at once, as if the world was slowly beginning to press down on the dancing man.

 

The piano was joined by an orchestra of strings as the tension began to grow, raising in volume to accompany the array of emotions that began to emit from the man. In the background, at first soft--as if in hesitance--a marching and resounding drum played alongside the strings. Soon joined by a heavenly chorus of vocal arrangements, the tempo and depth of the music increased until the original piano disappeared, swallowed by the overpowering orchestra until there was nothing left. And through it all, the boy danced. He spun and spiraled, lept and lunged in ways that left one breathless and in awe. As the drums began to beat, he grew confident and proud and as the piano faded, there was a profound sense of determination that the man carried with him throughout the later half of his performance.

 

The orchestra was joined shortly by a symphony of trumpets that cut-off as the persistent beat changed to a music box and an electric, acoustic guitar strumming. During this time, a impression of joy came from the entity on the ice as he moved as if guided by invisible hands, one young and loving, another kind and brave. Gathering speed, the being danced among these invisible companions taking their warmth him as he jumped and spiraled across the ice with newfound strength and boldness. For a short time the music box and guitar continued beside the tribal marching drums, at one point even accompanied shortly by the soft and piercing notes of a lone wooden flute. Still, warmth and determination fueled the man as he jumped and reached for the heavens and unseen specters across the ice.

 

As the final quarter of the program began, the standard tribal marching drum grew and the chorus of voices returned. Gradually, the sounds of the guitar and music box were soon swallowed by the overpowering vocals and with their disappearance, so too disappeared the being’s joy. The chorus grew haunting and forceful, attempting to convey a sense of urgency and desperation, a desire to grasp something just out of reach. The young soul too grows desperate, as he marches alongside the spirits of warriors and the phantoms of those left behind, trying to hold in his own hands the phantom light at the end of the tunnel. He bends to impossible lengths as he spins, jumps when he should have fallen long ago, and soars through the sky in spite of the earth’s claim to his body.

 

A bugle sounds as the voices rise and finally crescendo, only to abruptly cease and disappear without a trace. In the place of the pounding drums and desperate chants, there existed only the lone piano that began the transcendental performance and the lone being that just shattered every perceived notion that everyone once had of him. The ice suddenly seemed so empty and bereft of life.  It felt as though the rink had grown twice in size and a sudden chill touched the audience as they registered the loss of the phantoms and passion that once came forth from the ice. Had the rink always been that large? Had the ice always been so cold?

 

Alone and silent, the man--for he was now once again a single man--returned to the center of the rink for the final solemn notes and completed one last spin, arms reaching out in supplication, as he to searched for the forms that only he could truly see. The haunting chorus and marching drums had left him behind, both the same and changed from how he began; for now, as he raises his head up to the sky in his final position, it is not with the eyes of a innocent child lost in a cruel world, but the eyes of a battle-worn warrior lost in a world of peace.

 

He held his final pose for a few seconds more before dropping his hands bonelessly to his sides, finally allowing for the spell he had cast over the spectators to be broken. A sound--not unlike the ocean tide crashing against the shores--rose up and raged throughout the entire stadium as the audience sprang to their feet in adoration for this skater. Flowers and gifts, that may not even have originally been meant for him, rained upon the ice and showered the young man.

 

As he bowed and gathered a few items in preparation to leave the ice while the audience applauded and screamed their appreciation for this miraculous athlete, a few would begin to wonder how it was possible for such a young man to put such emotion into his performance. As he left the ice to receive his scores, more still would wonder what possibly could have made the skater that just appeared in front of them. As he sat in the Kiss and Cry with his coach, the general audience would begin to ask exactly who was this skater that just gave them the best performance that they had ever seen. A skater that had filled the empty and cold ice with life and energy beyond anything they had ever experienced. (Many would wonder, even days afterward, how it was even _possible_ for his mere presence to fill the room with the life-force of a thousand souls. The sentiment would be widespread and shared amongst most of the spectators and the other young competitors.)

 

Determination, devotion, hardship, triumph, despair, hope, rage, and love. All of these emotions flowed freely from his body during the program, filling in the emptiness of the rink with invisible scenes and fantastical dreams until the life overflowed from the rink borders and filled the audience’s hearts. Not a single moment, a single second of his performance was wasted. There was art and beauty and _soul_ in every placement of his arms, in every expression on his young face, in every back breaking spin, and in every gravity-defying jump. The dedication and drive in every action of the boy could be so deeply felt by the audience due to the sheer authenticity of the emotions that surely could only have been born from personal experiences.

.

.

.

 

_(Very few, however, would be able to recognize exactly what those experiences might have entailed. Of those that did but had never met the man prior, there would be very few words that they could give to others to properly explain the performance. For they could see it as it was truly meant to be seen. The force that emitted from the man was something to be admired, but not something to strive after...for the strength he possessed was as beautiful as it was tragic.)_

_._

_._

_._

 

No one knew where this skater had come from. Or why such a talented athlete was only just now making his debut into the skating world. Surely someone should have known who he was or where he trained to be able perform in the way that he did. Surely someone must know something, _anything._ But, no. There is absolutely no information about him beyond his age, current coach, and name.

 

They named the prodigal skater, Viktor Nikiforov, a “Living Legend” for his high technical scores and his ability to surprise the audience again and again. But the miraculous performer would be known as something more, something divine and beyond their comprehension. A breathing myth, as it were. Someone whose true worth and power cannot be believed unless experienced in person, and even then some would not believe what they had seen. He was something fierce and beautiful, majestic and terrifying. The “Dancing Dragon” they would call him, for only such a title is worthy of the force of nature and raging storm known as Katsuki Yuuri.


	2. All that I Am and All that I can Be

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A review of Yuuri's life, from his early days in Hasetsu until the very beginning of the SAO live game launch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, first off, I am so sorry that this took so long to come out! In my defense, I did not think that this chapter would be so long, but even after revising my outline, I couldn't find a single part in this chapter that wasn't necessary for the near and far future of this series.
> 
> Second, thank you so much to all of those who read and enjoyed this story! Your comments and kudos were very nice to receive and I loved your feedback for the last chapter.
> 
> Now without further ado, please enjoy the next chapter and look at the end notes for additional information and news on the next arc!

_(What defines you as a person is nothing more than a collection of moments and experiences that have served to inspire and mold you as you grew. These influences can come from anywhere: your environment, your family, your friends._

_But the thing that defines you most is often something much smaller and much more damaging: your choices._

 

_This is the beginnings of a boy who made a slightly different choice and how his life and those his touched were changed forever.)_

 

~o~

 

When he was three, Yuuri saw his mother and father as they worked about the family onsen. How they moved about with pride and happiness. How they enjoyed every moment of the time they spent working in the inn. He saw how the people around them lit up with happiness, how his mother could simply smile and fill the room with warmth, how his father’s joyous laughter could inspire even more laughter from the other local men as they watched sports on the television.

 

Yuuri was three when he thought he found his place alongside his parents and older sister, Mari. He had found his place and he was happy. He felt that he could live his life content and at peace simply helping his parents manage the inn.

 

It might seem boring and quiet to most people, but Yuuri would content there among the peace and quiet.

 

~o~

 

Yuuri was four and he was not happy. School was a terrible place and he doesn’t know what he did to deserve being sent there. The children were mean and called him names and made fun of his weight. He doesn’t understand why they say the things they do or why they push and shove him when he walks by.

 

A small voice in his head--that sounds suspiciously like his bullies--tells him that he deserves to be treated this way. If he is so disliked then surely he must have done something wrong, right? So he continues going to school as the small pain in his chest grows after every word they say, after every comment about his weight, his small stutter when he speaks, and his general shyness.

 

When the pain got a little bit too much to bear he asks his sister what he did wrong and why other kids didn’t like him. He asks if he was different--thinner and more outgoing--would people like him more and stop saying their hurtful words.

 

Mari got a dark look on her face at that moment that the five year old Yuuri couldn’t understand. It scared him a little bit but something told him that the look was not meant for him.

 

“You are fine the way you are, Yuuri. You don’t need to change to make friends,” she said with a serious look on her face. “And if they can’t see how amazing you are then they are not worthy my little brother.”

 

She continued studying Yuuri’s face as he processed her words. Worthy of Yuuri? How could that be? He was nothing special or great. He couldn’t draw well like Akari or throw far like Momiji or kick a ball as far as Keita. In fact, he was more likely to trip over the ball and make a mess. He wasn’t strong or fast or smart. He wasn’t even that nice-looking (at least according to Kinoshita-sensei first grade female student Handbook of Hotness Levels TM ).

 

Why would anyone want to be Yuuri’s friend? He didn’t dare to think that he could get that much. He just hoped that they would leave him alone and not make the hurt in his lungs and chest worse.

 

When Yuuri looked back Mari’s face she seemed sad (and maybe a little upset). Yuuri asked what was wrong. Did he do something to make her sad? He didn’t want to make her sad! This was why he didn’t go to mom or dad with his questions. He didn’t want to worry them. She made a funny face when Yuuri asked her this. Like she didn’t know if she should laugh or yell or cry (which doesn’t make sense because Yuuri has never seen his strong older sister cry). In the end she sighed, shoulders slumped a little as she reached out a hand and ruffled Yuuri’s hair.

 

“You’ll understand one day, Yuuri. I promise you, one day you will find some awesome friends who will stay by you no matter what and you will forget all about what those little brats around you say. Just trust me, okay?”

 

Yuuri was skeptical. Mari was smart and cool and strong. She was nothing like Yuuri. But she had never lied to Yuuri before so he would trust her. (But the small voice still told he that he was not good enough. He pushed the voice away.)

 

He nodded, “Okay.”

 

Mari smiled at him one more time, then turned towards the road that connected their house with their school. “Well now that that is over with, let’s get home. Dad said that a new party is coming in later today and the inn is going to need all the help it can get.”

 

His sister started walking then, not looking back to see if Yuuri was following her or not. But Yuuri noticed how one of the hands she had in her pockets before was know hanging loosely by her side. She didn’t offer her hand to him. She simply left it there for Yuuri to take if he wanted to.

 

Yuuri doesn’t know why the fact that she didn’t just take his hand makes him happy, but it does and he is grateful. He runs to catch up to his sister and grasps her hand in his. Without looking she returns the gesture. Wrapping her long, strong fingers around his soft and pudgy ones.

 

They walk all the way home like that in comfortable silence and Yuuri doesn’t think that he will ever be able to express how glad he is that Mari is his sister.

 

~o~

 

Yuuri is five and Mari is the devil. Somehow she was able to communicate with his mother telepathically (don’t ask him how she did it. He just knows that she did!) and now his mother is taking him to a dance class in order to “keep healthy and stay fit.”

 

He doesn’t want to go. He knows that he is not good at athletic things. He always drops the ball when he has to play catch in P.E. and he trips over his own feet enough when all he is doing is walking through the hallways.

 

(But that might be because of all the random feet and legs that keep ending up in his way when he is walking.)

 

(...Yuuri doesn’t want to think about that. So he won't.)

 

As his mom walks him towards the dance studio owned by an old friend of hers from high school, all Yuuri can think about is how much he is going to fail. He knows that he will just get in the way and fall and make a fool of himself. And then his mom will not be able to look at her friend's face ever again out of shame and it will be all his fault and maybe he should just run now before it is too--

 

“We’re here!” His mother exclaims.

 

_Too late._

 

Yuuri sighs and tries to think of ways to escape this situation with the least amount of embarrassment and pain. So wrapped up in his thoughts, Yuuri failed to notice his surroundings as his mother ushered him through the sleek wooden-floored hallways of Hasetsu’s only resident dance studio. He failed to see the pictures of a famous dancer and trophies with their name that litter the walls and the various empty studio rooms with mirrored walls and golden bars. He didn’t notice how dark the empty rooms looked nor did he see the dust that accumulated on top of the grand piano in the 3rd studio. He couldn’t see or hear anything around him as he drowned in his own thoughts and was lead to the studio at the very end of the hallway. Yuuri just wanted to run away.

 

Until the room before him was visited by a fairy.

 

Yuuri simply stood in the entrance way that his mother had lead him to during his internal rambling session. He watched with wide eyes as the fairy fluttered around the small room, her hair twisting around her as she moved. Her arms, legs, feet, and hands all moved gracefully and without a single tremble, even when she balanced on the toes of one foot and spun around and around and around until Yuuri himself grew dizzy.

 

Yuuri was entranced. He can’t remember seeing anything more beautiful in his (short) life. He is sure that if he could read the dictionary and find the definition of beauty he would see a picture of the scene in front of him.

 

“Oh, Hiroko-chan! When did you get here? If you were here you should have said something!”

 

Yuuri blinked and turned his gaze back toward the woman walking towards them, only then realizing that the dance was already over. Her face was slightly flushed and her breath a little uneven but other than that she seems completely fine. Not at all like she just performed a piece of magic before Yuuri’s very eyes.

 

“Sorry, senpai, but you were focusing so much! I didn’t want to disturb you,” his mother responded with a happy bounce in her voice. “Besides, it looked like Yuu-chan was enjoying watching you as well.”

 

“Hmmm, is that so?”

 

The woman now stands in front of Yuuri. She crosses her arms underneath her chest but beyond that, her posture is beyond perfect. Back straight, knees together, and feet spread. She seems the model of the word “imposing” now. Her eyes are sharp and a little cold. She doesn't seem at all like the light and lofty creature he just saw float around the room.

 

Yuuri feels himself straighten up in response to her assessing gaze.

 

“Yes! Senpai, let me introduce you. This is my youngest, Yuuri,” his mother says eye crinkled into small crescents as she smiles. Placing a hand on Yuuri’s shoulder she draws his attention. “And Yuuri, this is my dear senpai, Okukawa Minako. She’s a ballerina.”

 

Yuuri sketches a quick bow and tries not to tip over in his haste to make a favorable impression. As he straightens, his gaze is lowered and focused on the floor separating Minako and himself.

 

Minako continues to study him. “So you liked my dancing did you? What did you think?”

 

Yuuri searched his mind for the biggest and smartest words he could use to describe the dancing he just saw. He wanted to describe how pretty she looked, how graceful and strong, and how he wanted to be like that someday, too. But of course, that’s not what came out of his mouth.

 

Instead he said: “Please teach me how to dance like a fairy!”

 

_Stupid, stupid, stupid! You could have said anything,_ anything, _and it would have been better than that!_

 

Still looking at the ground, Yuuri was able to see the dancer stumble a little as she step backwards. “W-what?”

 

_Well, no going back now._

 

Yuuri looked up for the first time since he bowed and grazed straight into the eyes of the confused woman. Her eyes were wide with one of her thin eyebrows raised in clear bafflement. As if she couldn’t believe what she just heard.

 

“Please, teach me how to dance like a fairy,” Yuuri repeated clearly, leaving no room for misunderstanding.

 

Minako’s jaw dropped as she studied Yuuri’s face in silence for a few moments. And then she started to laugh. She doubled over and held her stomach as her loud laughter filled the small room.

 

Yuuri was mortified! How could be have just asked her like that. More like demanded, if he is being honest. He really is just a dumb little piggy. How could he think that he could ever dance like a fairy? Yuuri could feel the corners of his eyes start to sting with unshed tears. He knew that by now his ears and face were burning red in embarrassment.

 

“Sorry, sorry!” Minako said as she got her laughter under control. “That’s the first time someone has ever responded to my question like that. Usually they say something stupid like: ‘It was so beautiful,’ ‘You are an inspiration,’ or my personal favorite ‘You _really_ captured the essence of the music.’ Hah! Like they even know what the music was even about.”

 

By the end, Minako’s face was pulled and pinched in disgust, as if remembering something truly vile and terrible. Her eye were focused on something far away. Yuuri thinks that whatever she is seeing must be very unpleasant for her to look so unhappy.

 

“And usually they just say those things to try and get some sort of favor out of me, so believe me, it was nice to hear you say exactly what you wanted without holding back. In fact, it was really refreshing!”

 

Minako is looking at him again and this time there is a little sparkle in her eyes that he can’t remember seeing in anyone’s eyes except for his family. Well, at least not directed at him.

 

“You want me to teach you?” her eyes are narrowed in thought now. “Okay, just you wait! I’ll make you my star pupil. You’ll be dancing like a fairy before you know it!”

 

“Really? Thank you, Senpai!” Yuuri’s mother now re-integrates herself into the conversation. “Isn’t this great Yuu-chan?”

 

Yuuri looked at his mother, then back at Minako through his eyelashes. He gave a small smile then bowed formally like he was taught by his parents long ago.

 

“Thank you, Okukawa-san. I am a bit slow and clumsy, but I promise to try my best.”

 

“Call me sensei. And you can use Minako. Okukawa makes me feel old.”

 

“Yes, Minako-sensei.”

 

“Good. Hiroko-chan, feel free to bring him over anytime next week. We can begin his lessons then.”

 

“Alright, I will.” The two of us turned away in preparation to leave as we bid our farewells. **“** You should come and visit Yu-topia Inn sometime, senpai. It would be nice to catch up with you again.”

 

Minako followed them down the hallway toward the exit. Her brow was furrowed and her lips pursed slightly. She looks uncomfortable, like she wants to turn around and flee but then she catches Yuuri watching her.

 

For a second, their eyes connect. Minako’s expression doesn't change much but Yuuri’s swears that a steely look entered her eyes as she she took a breath and agreed.

 

“You’re right. Maybe I will.”

 

“Wonderful!”

 

They are already outside and turning to leave when Minako calls out to him.

 

“Yuuri!”

 

Turning back around, Yuuri sees Minako leaning against the entryway of her own studio. She is giving Yuuri an unreadable look again, gazing deep into his eyes, searching for something inside of him. Then she nods, apparently having found what she is looking for.

 

“Don't go thinking that you are slow and dumb. Be more confident. You have potential, trust me. After all,” her lips pull up into a tiny devious smirk as that familiar yet unknown gleam re-enters her eyes, “Very few people would be able to tell I was dancing the ‘Lilac Fairy.’ Especially if there was no music.”

.

.

.

Later that week, Yuuri would spend his meager savings to buy a CD for a band that he knows his sister likes. He gave it to her silently and she ruffled his hair as she received it.

 

No words needed to be said. They both knew what Yuuri was trying to say.

 

(Yuuri is again grateful that Mari is his sister.)

 

~o~

 

When the next week came around, Yuuri began learning from Minako-sensei. Well, more like she began to give him list of exercises to do daily as she watched. They were not easy. She pushed him hard in the beginning. “Testing his limits” she had said.

 

“How am I supposed to know what I can teach you if don’t see you how much you can take right now? Now, do it again.”

 

And Yuuri did. He completes push-ups, squats, stretches, jumping jacks, and sit-ups until he can barely see straight. Everyday for a week, Yuuri did anything and everything that Minako-sensei asked of him. He doesn’t remember the last time he ever ran that much or that fast.

 

(If he is honest, he is having trouble remembering anything other than _pain,pain,pain_ right now.)

 

But Yuuri doesn’t give up. He doesn’t think that he has ever wanted to do something as much as learn to dance from Minako. He keeps going forward, praying that if he takes that last step that maybe tomorrow Minako will deem him ready to learn.

 

Yuuri doesn’t complain. Somehow, Yuuri finds that he doesn’t want to disappoint the woman who is giving him her undivided attention.

 

Sometimes Yuuri will look back at Minako-sensei and see the return of the light in her eyes and there is a small smile on her lips that grows just a little more everyday.

 

After the week finally comes to a close, Minako says that Yuuri is ready to begin his first real lesson.

 

“I needed to see what your body could currently do, but more than that, I needed to see how much you were _willing_ to do. Honestly, I expected you to give up or whine about it being too hard. But you kept coming back for more every day,” the spark glows bright in her eyes now. “I know adults that don’t have as much guts as you and would have given up halfway. Or maybe they are just not half as stubborn.”

 

Yuuri notices that she does that often. Gives him little compliments here and there like they are common facts and she is only now verbalizing it for him to hear. She often precedes or follows the comment with a little joke on Yuuri’s behalf but he is starting to realize that she doesn’t really mean anything hurtful by it. (Yuuri thinks his mother called this type of personality “prickly,” like a rose.)

 

Yuuri’s lesson began in earnest after that. He learned the proper positions from First to Fifth. Practiced piles and fondues over and over again until his knees and feet ached. And he still kept on going.

 

Yuuri doesn’t remember the last time he had so much fun! He devoted himself to ballet and dance. For the first time in a long while, Yuuri didn’t dread waking up. He was excited! He couldn’t wait to go back to Minako’s and practice more.

 

It was late one night after Yuuri had just learned how to do a passable Jete, that Yuuri found himself wondering about the small light he saw growing in Minako-sensei eyes as the days passed. He tried to understand what it meant many times before but his young mind was unable to give him any hints or references to compare. He would be curious for days and he would fall asleep thinking about it, but ultimately he would forget his curiosity as the days passed by. Yuuri just grew to related the look with Minako, never really questioning it's origin again after years of studying under Minako-sensei.

.

.

.

(It wouldn’t be until many years later, as Yuuri cheerful watched the young dark skinned boy he would whole-heartedly call his brother jump and dash across the ice that Yuuri began to understand the look. It was a gaze to be directed at your purpose and pride. A look given to someone who gives your life meaning and made your days up until then something worth living for.)

 

~o~

 

Yuuri is nine when Minako-sensei stages an intervention and jump-starts the process of one of the biggest changes to affect Yuuri’s life to date.

 

For months now Minako has been trying to get Yuuri to interact with kids his age.

 

“You’re still a kid Yuuri. You shouldn’t spend all your time here with me and helping with your family inn,” Minako-sensei insists. “You should go and make some friends from school.”

 

That is one of the worst ideas Yuuri has ever heard. Sure, the kids at school have not been as bad as when he was younger, but Yuuri is sure that is only because he hasn’t been around for them to easily get to.

 

Yuuri has been doing a little better in school in recent years. It turned out that the reason that Yuuri was such a slow reader and the reason he couldn’t play catch without missing the ball was because he needed glasses. Apparently, his eyesight was _very_ poor. He thought that he just was too dumb to read the notes his teacher put on the board.

 

It was nice to be able to see ‘clearly’ for once. Yuuri found the reading and lessons at school were much easier than he originally thought and he was extremely happy when his grades began to rise. Mostly because it made his parents light up with pride.

 

(Their pride helped to soothe the pain in his heart that came with the price of the glasses.)

 

But Yuuri knew even then that having the glasses would not help him connect with his classmate any more than wearing a different shirt would. More than likely they would just find something new about him to make fun of. So he didn’t get his hopes up. Don’t hope for anything and you can’t get hurt, right?

 

(Yuuri was right, they did find something new. Namely, his large blue framed glasses that kept falling down his nose every time he looked down. But he was also wrong. It did hurt.)

 

For the most part, Yuuri avoid them and they didn't try too hard to find him when he ran home or to Minako’s studio after school ended. (He personally thinks his current interaction level with his classmates is perfectly acceptable.)

 

But that wasn't enough for Minako-sensei. She seemed to always find a way for him to try and make him interact with the outside world without pushing him into it. She’s even cooperated with his parents!

 

This new tactic though is different though. So much that it actually worked for a few weeks before Yuuri even realized what was going on.

 

He blames it on the bubbly and charismatic force that is Yuuko.

 

(“Call me Yuu-chan! And you can be Yuu-kun! Now we match!” she had insisted upon their first meeting.)

 

Yuuko was local girl about 3 year older than Yuuri. She had light brown hair that she keep in a simple ponytail and bright chestnut brown eyes. Yuuri remembers seeing her around the school yard a few times throughout the years. She was always followed by a larger boy one year Yuuri’s senior and they seemed to get along well, always animatedly talking about some hobby that they both shared.

 

(Actually it was just Yuuko that was talking. The older boy, Nishigori Takeshi, just listened and grumbled his replies every now and then to make the girl happy. Yuuri doesn’t know how their relationship works--when one looks so happy all the time and the other looks like he wants to be anywhere but there--but it does. And it is really not his place to try and puzzle them out anyway.)

 

In his mind, Yuuko was neutral. She seemed nice and she never bullied him in the past. But she was loud and happy all the time, always giving away smiles and laughter to anyone that spent more than two minutes with her.

 

Yuuri did not know how to deal with someone like that.

 

That wasn’t any less true when he finally met the girl for the first time when Minako brought her in one day during his training session.

 

“Yuuri, this is Yuuko. She is going to be cross-training here of a little while. Try to get along, okay?”

 

Yuuri had no time to react--to protest--before the younger of the two girls was before him, giving him one of the widest smiles he had ever seen in his life. Not even his mother smiled that widely. Seriously, Yuuri feels a little like he is staring straight at the sun and has to fight the urge to squint and use his hand to shield his eyes from the glow he imagines is coming off of her.

 

“Hi! I am Yuuko, but you can call me Yuu-chan! I can’t wait to train with you. This is going to be sooooo much fun!”

 

She is so happy and excited that is looks like she’s been drinking coffee for three days straight. Yuuri is so shocked he looks like a deer about to be hit by a freight train.

 

And so began the adventures of Yuuri and Yuuko.

 

~o~

 

Yuuko was a force to be reckoned with. She stormed into his life and was so genuinely kind that Yuuri found it hard to resist anything that she asked of him. It also helped that she was genuinely interested in learning ballet and she never made fun of him despite being a “boy who danced” like the other kids at school.

 

(She did, however, give more compliments than Yuuri ever remembers receiving. It was awkward to say the least and on multiple occasions, Yuuri would find himself receiving her praise with red cheeks and stuttering denials on his lips.)

 

After getting to know Yuuko, Yuuri summoned the courage to ask he what she was “cross-training” for.

 

“Oh! I didn’t tell you?” Yuuko seemed surprised--like she couldn’t fathom not having told Yuuri something as important as her own name. “I am a figure skater at the local rink, _Ice Castle Hasetsu_.”

 

“Figure skating? What’s that?”

 

“You don’t know?” Yuuko looked shocked again. “I thought since you were Minako-sensei’s student you would be a fan, too. Minako-sensei is a _huge_ fan. She's been coming to all of the local competitions for a few years now. I heard that sometimes she watches the international competitions together with the Nishigori’s, the family that owns the rink.”

 

_Oh,_ Yuuri thinks, _so that is where Minako-sensei goes when she comes back drunk sometimes._ Now that Yuuri stops to think about it, he can remember a few times when his sensei would sit in the TV-room of Yu-topia watching people slide around on the ice. (Yuuri was helping around the inn at the time so he doesn’t recall the details too well.)

 

“Does this mean you’ve never tried ice skating before?”

 

Yuuri finds himself returning to the present conversation only to be faced with a smiling Yuuko.

 

(She is always smiling so Yuuri doesn’t understand why he is getting the feeling that he needs to run away as fast as he can and hide under a very large rock.)

 

“N-no…” Yuuri hesitantly responds.

 

“Then you should definitely try it! It’s so much fun! You get to move really fast and spin around like the wind and the ice just glows and shines so _beautifully._ And you, Yuu-kun! You're so pretty when you dance and you dance so well! I bet you would be amazing on the ice! You should come and skate with me!”

 

(Yuuri wants to know where she gets this confidence for his abilities from because he knows that it didn’t come from him.)

 

“I don’t think so, Yuu-chan. It looks dangerous. I’ll probably fall a lot and make a fool of myself. I’ll just get in everyone’s way.”

 

(Not to mention the fact that he would essentially be falling to the ground with knives attached to his feet.

 

_Yeah,_ no _. Yuuri is_ fine _with his feet on the ground, thank you very much.)_

 

“That’s not true! I am sure you will do fine. Everyone falls in the beginning a little bit but I am sure that you will pick it up soon!” _Really, where does this assurance come from?_ “Please, Yuu-kun? Please~?”

 

Yuuko looks at Yuuri with her large chestnut brown eyes. They are sparkling a little bit and Yuuri has to summon every bit of his strength in order to not cave and go along with anything Yuuko wants.

 

(A distant part of Yuuri’s mind wonders if this is how Yuuko manages to get that larger boy to follow her around and listen to her all the time. He must have given up resisting her long ago. Yuuri refuses to do so. He _must,_ he _will,_ remain strong.)

 

“Sorry, Yuu-chan, but I don't think I would be any good at it. Better to just keep my feet on the ground.”

 

“But Yuu-kun! You said you’ve never tried before! How would you know if you don't try? Please Yuu-kun, just once. If you don’t like it, I promise that I will never ask again. But you're my friend and I want to show you the sport I love the most. Just like how you like ballet. So, please Yuu-kun? Just once.”

 

_I am not getting out of this am I,_ Yuuri thinks in resignation. He thinks of all the times Yuuko has spent in the studio with him and all the nice things she had said and done for him over the past few months. She was kind and patient and never made fun of him. And except for this one time, Yuuko had never tried to make Yuuri do anything he seemed uncomfortable with.

 

To this day, Yuuri doesn’t know how he is supposed to interact with his age mates. He doesn’t truly have any references on what is expected between _friends_ since he never had any himself and his interaction are limited to those of the negative side of the spectrum. But if he was honest with himself, he would say that he wanted Yuuko to be his friend very badly. She was what Yuuri had always imagined a friend would be like and--despite his initial reservations against such connections--Yuuri had found himself recently looking upon his classmates and desiring a companion of his own as well.

 

Yuuri wanted Yuuko to be his friend, but he was sure that there was no way that she would want to be his. So he kept himself content with the few lessons they had every week with Minako-sensei. But…

 

_“You’re my friend and I want to show you the sport I love the most.”_

 

But Yuuko had called him-- _him, plain, dumb Yuuri_ \--her friend. And the one thing she asked of him was to try something that she loved as much as he loved dancing. A plea to share something with him as well. Was that such a hard thing to give?

 

“...okay, Yuu-chan. I’ll try it, but just once, okay?”

 

Yuuko jumps and spins around as she cheers and beams in excitement. The smile that she give to him then makes his heart beat a little faster and warmer in his chest knowing that _Yuuri_ is the reason behind it.

 

_It's worth it,_ he thinks, _to fall down a couple (hundred) times to make her smile like that._

 

It was later that Yuuri was reminded that Minako is, in fact, an evil genius. When the two of them were leaving after class and Yuuko had explained to Minako that they would not be coming in tomorrow because Yuuko was taking Yuuri ice skating for the first time, Minako eyes light up in manner not unlike the conniving foxes from Japanese Folklore. As if she knew something that someone else is now just starting to see and as if all of her wishes had be granted. It was then when Yuuri realized that this was the reason Minako had agreed to teach Yuuko; Minako had made a long term gamble on getting Yuuri to make friends and getting him out of his comfort zone.

 

Yuuri thinks that he should feel a little betrayed but then he looks back at Yuuko who is still so happy and oblivious to the whole plot of Minako’s, who is so excited to share her passion with Yuuri, who is still smiling like it’s Christmas and her birthday all at once.

 

_...It’s still worth it._

 

~o~

 

Ice Castle Hasetsu is small and cold and Yuuri thinks that he might be just a little bit in love. The ice shines like the fancy necklaces and bracelets that Yuuri had once seen Minako-sensei looking at as they passed by a local jewelry shop on their way to the studio. It was cold and wet and when the lights hit the surface just right it looked like there were shooting stars dancing across the rink, the tracks left behind by the previous skaters forming maps and roadways for the stars to follow.

 

_I want to be there,_ Yuuri find himself thinking.

 

He remembers that when he saw Minako-sensei dance for the first time, it was the dancing that he loved, the emotions, the expressions, the sheer _magic._ But he had never thought of the room around Minako as important. She could have been dancing in a dirt field or in a junkyard and Yuuri would still have found her dancing beautiful. Yuuri felt that dancing did not need to exist in a specific space or time. Dance was dance. To him, it did not matter where he performed; it would always be the same to him.

 

But looking at the empty rink before him--it’s beautiful white, shining surface--Yuuri feels the yearning to dance. He wants to dance, to jump, to fly, _to exist_ on that surface. He wants to feel the cold breeze that he sees running its fingers through Yuuko’s hair as she demonstrates a simple figure to him. He wants to carve his mark onto the ice, to show that he was there.

 

Yuuri is not a fool. He knows that he will not simply be able to dance on that frozen lake right way. He knows it will not be easy to learn to skate, that he will have to fall and fall and fall because nothing ever comes easily for him. He intuitively knows that he should give up, knows that he is going to fail and that it will hurt when he does, but Yuuri cannot stop his mind or his heart from desiring it. He wants to skate, to dance, on that ice--so he will.

 

At nine years old, Yuuri begins his adventures in skating alongside Yuuko. Just like he thought, it is not easy and Yuuri spends many nights nursing bruised feet, knees, and hands. He is in more physical pain that he can ever remember but he doesn’t let that stop him. The owner’s son, Nishigori Takeshi, turns out to be a mean bully that has made it his life’s mission to push Yuuri around and ridicule Yuuri’s attempts at learning. He seems to enjoy making Yuuri fall in front of Yuuko.

 

Usually such actions would make Yuuri withdraw, ashamed, but Yuuko is still here, has not left Yuuri’s side despite his constant and ridiculous showings and Yuuri finds comfort and strength in that. He finds the courage to stand up and continue forward no matter how much Takeshi tells him he can’t do it. After a while, Yuuri actually begins to appreciate the commentary and put-downs in a roundabout manner. By Takeshi challenging him, Yuuri begins to feel the need to respond and excel. He finds himself with a desire to beat Takeshi, to show him that he is wrong, that Yuuri is not weak and _can_ skate.

.

.

.

(Yuuri is nine years old when he realizes that he hates to lose and he has Takeshi to thank for it.)

.

.

.

Yuuri skates and skates and skates until he can’t feel his feet and legs. He dances in Minako’s studio and imagines that one day he will move like that on the ice as well. He draws small skates and snowflakes all over his school notebooks while in class and he somehow know that when he wakes up in the morning, his dreams were filled with skating snow fairies because he can still see their silhouettes on his eyelids when he closes his eyes. He can still feel that crisp, sharp sting of the ice against his face, can still hear the song of the ice as he danced alongside the winter fae.

 

~o~

 

Before he knows it, two years pass and Yuuri is eleven. His days have changed and are now filled with school, dancing, skating, and the inn. He has his family, Minako, and Yuuko always around and willing to teach him. He has even struck up a tentative friendship with Takeshi after a while, the two of them bonding over the eccentric whims of Yuuko and their (likely devastating) consequences. They acknowledge each other as well: Yuuri admires Takeshi’s loyalty to Yuuko and his family business and Takeshi grudgingly admits that Yuuri is not completely hopeless at skating. Progress.

 

But the major change in Yuuri’s life is the ice itself. The beautiful, serene ice gives Yuuri peace and quiet, a place to glide and just lose himself and forget his worries for a few moments. Yuuri hadn’t realized how much he need a place like that, needed a place where he could just exist peacefully as himself with no pressure or expectations. Over the years, Yuuri began to feel a pressing in his chest, a shortness of breath in strange situations. His mind working at top speed, but his body numb and unresponsive. It nothing major, only lasting for a few seconds at most and only slightly worrying, but when Yuuri needed an escape, a moment to breathe, he can find it on the ice. Yuuri _loves_ skating on the ice.

 

And therein lies the problem that Yuuri is currently facing.

 

The dedication Yuuri gave to the rink, the time he had spent learning how to skate a little better just so he could stay on the ice for just a few minutes, a few seconds more, resulted in Yuuri becoming rather proficient at the sport. He would even say that he liked skating for skating's sake now. He had surpassed Takeshi in speed and skill months before and his footwork was on par with Yuuko now. He enjoyed it, the time he spent there alongside his friend(s).

 

Skating has become such a large part of Yuuri’s life over the years, to the point that he couldn’t imagine his life without it. But he is coming to a bit of a crossroads with his life. Already in school, the teachers have begun to ask what we want to do in the future. Many of the other children write such questions off as unimportant, giving simple or generic answers like “idol,” “star athlete,” or something just as lofty and vague. Yuuri, however, is different and gives the question its due respect, trying to decide what it was that he wanted to do with his life.

 

His family and friends don’t push him to decide at all but Yuuri knows that he has to make a decision. He could continue on with the inn, staying and helping at Yu-topia Akatsuki, learning the family business and trade. A quiet, simple life that he could enjoy and relax in. But if he does plan to work in the inn full-time, he will not have time to dance and skate as much as he would like, especially if he plans to continue with his schooling in order to get an education to help his family business in the future.

 

Yuuri may have to give up dancing or skating or even both of them and he...Yuuri can’t fathom it. A life without learning and practicing jumps and spins in the ballet studio with Minako; a life without lazy afternoons beside Yuuko and Takeshi, circling the beautiful ice in graceful figures and loops. Objectively, he knows that he could try to dance or skate professionally, but Yuuri wouldn’t even know how to decide between the two let alone whether or not he even wanted to join the competitive world.

 

(Though he never mentions it, he can see that the idea of Yuuri attempting to go into the professional sports world scares Minako. She wants him to be happy and succeed and she never tries to make or push him into decisions, but still she acts as if to say something, only to instead purse her lips and frown inwardly as she recalls something unpleasant.

 

Yuuri doesn’t ask what she is remembering.)

 

There is time. He is only eleven, so his life doesn’t need to be decided now. But the tightness in his chest is mounting as the days pass and even his icy sanctuary is no longer enough to keep the worries at bay for longer than a few minutes at a time.

 

It is on a chilly afternoon in the late October that Yuuri no longer feels the confusion over his future and that he devotes himself to skating with a new-found passion. And once again, he has Yuuko to thank for this new development.

 

The day started out normally, for the most part. Yuuri was distracting himself by moving across the ice in a dance to the song that his mother used to sing for him as a child. He had found the sheet music the other day in the school music room while cleaning and had resolved to learn it on his home keyboard piano as a gift for his mother’s upcoming birthday. It wasn’t perfect yet, but Yuuri knew the song well enough by now that he could envision it playing in the background while gliding on the ice.

 

Yuuri was about to enter a camel spin as the chorus began when Yuuko called out to him from the boards at the end of the rink located closest to the dressing room.

 

“Yuu-kun! Come watch! The skaters are coming out soon!”

 

Startled out of his imagined routine, Yuuri gazed up at Yuuko curiously. Yuuko was bouncing up and down in front of the locker room waving her arms up and down in obvious excitement. Takeshi stood beside her with his arms crossed and a long-suffering look across his face.

 

“Skaters?” Yuuri asked as he pulled up to the exit of the rink where his two rinkmates were now waiting for him. “What do you mean?”

 

“The Grand Prix Series, Yuuri! Skate America is starting now;  we can finally watch it together!”

 

_Ah,_ Yuuri remembers now. Yuuko has always been talking about her favorite skaters and the winners of different competitions ever since Yuuri began to come to Ice Castle regularly. Yuuri had never found much interest in the competitions or famous skaters himself so he never bothered trying to watch on his own. Yuuko, however, followed the figure skating world with religious passion, never missing a single detail or event that happened in that world and is only too happy to share her findings with Yuuri and Takeshi while they are skating.

 

(Yuuri has learned to simply tune out her episodes of extremely passionate rants and comment only in the neutral in order to avoid _another_ debate on why he is wrong or right. The first and last time he made the mistake of commenting on a certain skaters love life--( _really, Yuuri_ didn’t _care who the skater “so-and-so” was seen leaving the fancy French restaurant with)_ \--Yuuko gave such a sudden and loud outburst that Yuuri fell out of his spread eagle spin and somehow managed to take down both himself and a passing Takeshi with him.)

 

A few times over the years, Yuuko had tried to have Yuuri come and watch the competitions at her house, but between dance, the rink, school, and the inn, Yuuri found little time to join her. It was possible for Yuuri to catch some of the performances while working in the inn. After all, they had a dining area equipped with a large television set to accommodate the customers coming in to enjoy some sake and watch a game, but those games were more for baseball and soccer. Yuuri couldn’t just change the channel so that he could occasionally catch a glimpse of a program. So despite her various tactics, Yuuko had not managed to get Yuuri to watch any major competitions up to now.

 

Apparently, that is no longer the case. Hasetsu is an old town, with old, rustic buildings and streets that see maybe nine to ten cars passing in a single day on the main roads. The population is composed of mostly older generations; children growing into adults and leaving to chase their dreams and very rarely returning to Hasetsu’s shores. The city has all of the basic necessities of the modern world: a modern train station with high speed trains connecting to the major cities, stable internet connections, and new phone stores being just a few of the examples. But such luxuries were rarely used around the rural town; the older generations finding no need and the younger still at a point in their lives when running outside held more appeal than the growing influence and power of ‘Social Media.’ Only in their adolescent years do the residents begin to investigate that world, often giving them dreams and goals that take them far from their birth town, hardly to be seen again after embarking on their journey into adulthood.

 

Being of an older nature, Ice Castle was not equipped with the latest in technology, still using old software programs to run the accounting and time slots of the rink despite the Nishigori family’s more contemporary technological know how. For this reason, the three of them could never sit around and watch a competition together at the rink.

 

However, it seemed that was no longer the case if the older model television screen he sees set up in the locker room is any indication. An older business or homeowner must have donated it to the rink for the purpose of better instructing the students. As they settle down on the benches in front of the screen to watch for the first time, Yuuri begins the familiar procedure of removing his skates and attending to the wide range of blisters and bruises forming on his feet.

 

“Look, look! The skaters are coming out!” Yuuko’s eyes are wide and sparkling as she looks at the screen. “Ah! Their costumes are perfect! Look at how Johnny’s hair has sparkles that match his outfit. Oh my gosh, Alexei top is so daring! I wonder what his theme is this season? Oh, oh! And there’s Viktor-!”

 

Out of the corner of his eyes, Yuuri swore he saw Takeshi wearing a face more suitable for a dying man, eyes dark and empty, mouth slightly open and cringing in disgust and pain. Yuuri keeps one ear on the happens and Yuuko’s commentary as he continues his daily ritual. Occasionally, Yuuri will look at the skaters and watch them go through a particular step sequence or jump and he makes a mental note to find a way to practice it himself later.

 

But mostly, Yuuri just watches and nods along with Yuuko as she explains points and presentations scores that hold some meaning that eludes him.

 

The next skater was just about to start and Yuuri contemplated leaving to go refill his empty water bottle when he heard the unmistakable first notes of a song that he would never forget. Years ago, when Yuuri first met Minako he had seen her dance to this music, even if he had not heard it at the time. He had spent hours afterward curled up on his bed just listening to the music and imagining the Fairy Minako dance around her small wooden floored studio.

 

Gazing up at the screen, Yuuri watched a boy a few years older than him fly across the screen as the notes of the “Lilac Fairy” continued. The teen had long silver hair tied back in a high ponytail that trailed behind him as he moved--like the faint glowing left behind by a shooting star on a clear starry night sky. His eyes were the most crystalline blue that Yuuri had ever seen, lighting up and sparkling just like the ice that Yuuri adores so much. His face was the palest and clearest white that Yuuri had ever seen, like that boy had never seen a day of sunlight. _And_ , Yuuri thinks distantly, _he might not have._

 

Yuuri _had_ researched other performance before, contrary to what Yuuko thought, but it was not of skaters. He had looked at dancers, and only of one performance. In an effort to replicate the beauty of Minako’s first dance, Yuuri had tried to find a reference online to guide him through the Lilac fairy, however none could ever come close to the magic that he had seen from his sensei. So when Yuuri started to dream of snow fairies on ice, he never tried to find a reference in reality, so sure that there existed nothing in reality that could match the fae in his mind.

 

_(How wrong he was.)_

 

The boy that glided and floated across the ice on the screen in front of him was the very definition of a winter fairy. Everything that Yuuri had imagined. (Everything that he wanted to be.) But unlike the unattainable dreams that Yuuri had, this boy truly existed, was truly able to accomplish everything that Yuuri had long thought he would never see in real life. And unlike his day dream companions, Yuuri _can_ one day dance beside this person.

 

He can feel it, the changing of something intrinsic inside of himself. The formation of a new dream, a new goal. His face lifts and brightens in anticipation, adoration, excitement and so much more. If Yuuri could catch a glimpse of himself in a mirror, he know his eyes would be wide and bright behind the large blue frames of his glasses, his face flushed red, and his smile wide and blinding.

 

“Wasn’t he just amazing?! I can’t wait for his free program.” Yuuko spins away from the screen and turns towards an impassive Takeshi and a star struck Yuuri. “Yuu-kun, wasn’t Viktor amazing! He skates _so_ beautifully. And he’s only turning 16 this year!”

 

_Viktor._ Yuuri turns his gaze back to the screen and watches the older teen wave and smile at the cheering crowd. His face is glistening slightly and pieces of his hair have fallen loss to frame his high cheekbones and sharp jaw line. His full name is now written in English and what Yuuri can only assume is the alphabet of the skaters native tongue.

 

_Viktor. Viktor Nikiforov._ Yuuri stares up at the screen determinedly. _One day, I am going to skate on the same ice as you,_ he promises and he feels the flames inside his heart stir and rise in answer to newfound conviction.

 

Yuuri is eleven, almost twelve, and he for once is no longer worried about his goals and his future. For the first time in months, when he went back to the ice to try and replicate the program, he felt no pressure, no daunting black cloud hanging over him and blocking his view. His mind was clear and his lungs expanded with no trouble at all. Yuuri has a goal; he may not know where it will take him, but he imagines and he hopes at the end he will find Viktor.

 

~o~

 

The next few months leading up to the December Junior Grand Prix finals found Yuuri trying to get his hands on anything and everything Viktor related. He researched all of this past performances online and ordered every magazine and poster of his new found idol with his allowance savings. He devoured every bit of information on the teen in hopes of understanding him a little bit more, of getting just a little bit closer.

 

When the Trophee de France began in mid-November, Yuuri could hardly contain his excitement as he watched Viktor take to the ice and prepare to perform to the Lilac Fairy once again. Over the past couple weeks, Yuuri had tried to replicated Viktor’s routine alongside Yuuko. They weren’t anywhere close to getting it right yet but they were determined to do justice to the skater’s routine.

 

For the next few days they watched him compete and win gold at Trophee de France and secure himself a position in the Junior Grand Prix Finals. With his qualification, information on Viktor became readily more available. He learned about Viktor’s hometown in St. Petersburg with it crowded streets lined with towering churches and ancient basilicas. He read of Viktor's desire to surprise the audience, to show them a new story every time he skated. He memorized every written word.

 

But he is _not_ obsessed, not matter what Takeshi says. He is just...dedicated to the cause of knowing his goal better.

 

And if Yuuri receives a young miniature chocolate brown poodle for his twelfth birthday a few weeks later by his _(completely uninformed)_ family, there is no way that it had _anything_ to do with Viktor’s own massive poodle, Makkachin, that Yuuri had looked at in a magazine for three hours straight.

.

.

.

_(“Aww, how cute!” Yuuko stares lovingly at the happy puppy resting in Yuuri’s arms, as they gather outside of the rink before their usual skating time. “What’s his name?”_

 

_“I named him Viktor.” Yuuri is definitely_ not _blushing. “Vicchan, for short.”_

 

_Yuuko squeals and stretches out her arms as she asks to hold him. Takeshi stands off to the side rolls his eyes heavenward. Vicchan barks happily and stretches up to lick at Yuuri’s face._

 

_Yuuri regrets nothing.)_

.

.

.

This is the year Viktor wins Gold in the Junior Grand Prix just a few weeks before the eve of his sixteenth birthday. This is the year that Yuuri devotes himself to whole-heartedly to skating, the moment that he is sure will define his life forever, the moment he vows to one day join Viktor Nikiforov on the same ice.

 

~o~

 

The road to Viktor is much harder than Yuuri thought it would be. There was paperwork and protocols and schedules for Yuuri to understand before he was even allowed to start to compete. Not even mentioning all of the costumes and fees, locations and rules that both confused and frightened him to no end. There was so much to learn and Yuuri was having a hard time deciphering the various bureaucracy and red tape that surrounding the skating world.

 

He did, however, receive quite a lot of help from those around him. Takeshi’s parents began to tutor Yuuri more intensely when he announced his desire to join the competitive circuit. They worked on eliminating the bad habits that Yuuri had accumulated over time. Before, his slightly raised shoulders when he landed a jump were a small matter. Now, they were the difference between success and failure. Minako also helped in this endeavor; her many years as a devoted fan and her experience as a professional dancer allowing her to analyze the slight shifts in balance and posture need to execute tighter spins and swifter steps.

 

( _“Can’t do much about the landings, though,”_ she had told Yuuri with a pinched face, clearly disgruntled by the fact. _“You’ll just have to find what works best for you, try looking at other skaters and see how they do it. Watch them closely, observe and absorb, then add it to your own skill. That is how you will improve. Never let a single experience, emotion, or desire go to waste. Even your failures can become your strength.”)_

 

(Yuuri would hold this lesson deep within his heart and he would remember it almost every day that he spent in that beautiful prison of swords and death.)

 

But for all of the struggles and hassle it was to enter the skating world, Yuuri could always convince himself it was worth it in the end. Every night, he would cuddle close to Vicchan in his bed and stare at the posters of his idol scattered about his walls--mapping out constellations on his ceiling--and he would think that he was one small step closer to his dream.

.

.

.

_All of these things were easy compared to what Yuuri would face after his first competition._

 

~o~

 

As his world crumbled around him, Yuuri wonders what part of him thought he could ever reach the same place as Viktor. What made him think that he was worthy of standing beside such a talented, perfect individual? He was nothing, just a plain, ordinary, anxious mess of a person who couldn’t even compete in a single competition without becoming a complete embarrassment to the entire skating community and the human race in general. (He feels like he should apologize to the universe for even _thinking_ of contaminating the space around his idol with his mere presence.)

 

It all began with Yuuri’s first ( _and more than likely last_ ) competition.

 

Everything had started out fine. He was nervous, but a quick glance around at the other young boys gathered in the skaters’ waiting area revealed that he was not alone in that sentiment.

 

( _Though he wondered if they had a hard time breathing or if their hearts felt like it was caught somewhere between their lungs and their mouths or if their stomach felt like it was trying to turn itself inside out or if their hands were so moist and sweaty that he could almost see rivers flowing between the cracks and if they couldn’t keep their thoughts focused on anything or if they thought that they didn’t deserve to be here--.)_

 

He had performed and done reasonably well, hard training and long, dedicated hours earning him a respectable placement of third out of twelve contestants after the short program announcement.

 

The performance he gave was well suited to himself, focusing more on the step sequences and presentation that came as easily as breathing given his extensive previous training in dance. The technical aspects were a different matter entirely however. He had touched down on many of his jumps and almost lost his balance completely once or twice, only managing to stay upright due to sheer stubbornness.

 

During the certification tests he had taken to earn his novice title, Yuuri had not experienced the pressure that came from performing in front of an audience. The thought that they would be watching him--picking apart the flaws that he knew he had and judging him for it--had never truly registered in Yuuri’s mind.

 

_What would they think when they saw him fall? When he raised his shoulders to high? When his face crumpled in despair when he messed up an element he knew he could do? Would they see all the flaws that clumsy,_ mediocre _,_ _dumb_ _,_ **_fat_ ** _Yuuri had?_

 

He had managed to stay calm and push these thoughts to the back of his mind for the entirety of his short program. But not for the Free Skate, and after that, Yuuri didn’t have to worry anymore. It wouldn’t matter anyway.

 

Maybe Yuuri had let the words the other skaters mumbled under their breaths as he passed affect him too much. Maybe he was putting too much expectation on himself. Maybe the blinding lights that shined above him as he moved toward the center of the rink were not really like a giant magnifying glass, attempting to burn him alive despite the coldness of the rink. Maybe his bloodstream wasn’t replaced with liquid cotton and jelly. Maybe his ears didn’t reverberate with the sounds of a busy hornets’ nest rattling around inside his head.

 

Maybe none of these things happened. Maybe it was all in his mind.

 

It didn’t matter.

 

As the music for his free skate began, Yuuri’s world filled with silence. When he should have been gliding, falling back into a layback spin, Yuuri stood motionless. Like a suspended doll in a glass container, a frozen ballerina in a music box.

 

Inside, Yuuri saw everything happening. He saw the unease and confusion of the audience growing; the worry in Minako’s furrowed brows and tensed shoulders; the desire to run out to meet him from Mari; the large, glimmering eyes of Yuuko with her hands held over her mouth.

 

He wanted to scream, to cry, to _move._

 

But he couldn’t. He was stuck, the world playing out in front of him as he stayed immobile, alone in his own mind. He couldn’t do anything.

 

_(He had never been so afraid.)_

 

~o~

 

_Panic attack_. That’s what he had heard the older coaches called it when he finally managed to hear the sounds around him, far away from the icy rink.

 

_Anxiety_ is was the doctors said. They might have said more complicated words with technical jargon but Yuuri was not paying enough attention. He didn’t care enough to listen--to understand.

 

_(He didn’t want to understand. He didn’t want to acknowledge those malicious voices in his head--the ones constantly bring him down with their poisonous lies and hurtful truths. He just wanted to ignore them. Why couldn’t he just ignore them--?)_

 

Basically, it meant that Yuuri was different. Other. _Inferior._

 

But that it nothing that he didn’t already know.

.

.

.

_(He knew shouldn’t have tried.)_

 

~o~

 

In true Minako-like fashion, his sensei has not allowed Yuuri to wallow in self-pity in his gloomy room for very long. Arriving at the inn in the early morning two weeks after the ( _dreadful, awful, terrible)_ competition, Yuuri was not surprised when his sensei began demanding that he continue his early morning exercises.

 

(He is actually surprised it took this long for her to come in attempt to get Yuuri moving.)

 

When he performs the daily exercises listlessly and without soul, his sensei spared him no remorse and made him do them again and again until he got them right.

 

Part of Yuuri is mad at Minako. What does she know about the pain that Yuuri is going through? What right does she have to come in here and act like what Yuuri experienced was no big deal and he can just get over it, move on? She had a successful career and was world-renown. Obviously, she did well for herself and didn’t struggle at all. She knows nothing of his frustration _(his shame, his pain, his_ **_fear._ ** _)_

 

She has no business controlling Yuuri’s life. He just wants to stay curled up in a ball and hidden away in his second floor room. He wishes his sensei would just leave him alone.

 

(The other, smaller, part of Yuuri objectively realizes that he should be grateful that Minako is treating him exactly the same as before. As if nothing has changed at all. Silently assuring him that she is still his sensei and he is still Yuuri.)

.

.

.

_(But everything has changed and Yuuri doesn’t know how to deal with this new reality._

 

_So he closes his eyes.)_

 

~o~

 

The clock’s second hand sounded louder than usual, seeming to mock Yuuri as he nervously sat before his computer screen all but staring a hole into the ARGUS forum he had constantly rereading and refreshing for the past 40 minutes. The screen still read:

 

**This page is not yet available. Please return in 20 minutes**.

 

Yuuri sighed in frustration.

 

_This is so stupid. Just make up your mind already._

 

A mindless suggestion had begun this whole ordeal. While he wants to blame Minako for the whole affair he reluctantly admits that his attitude for the past few months (and particularly the last few weeks since March 15th) has been somewhat worrying.

 

Things have not been well for Yuuri since World Juniors ended. When the _last_ World Juniors Viktor would ever compete in ended.

 

Realistically, Yuuri knew that even if he had managed to hold himself together and performed his best he still would not have guaranteed himself a place on the World Juniors’ Japanese team.

 

But the knowledge that he _could_ have--no matter how slim a chance-- _burned_ Yuuri deep inside. He could have compete with Viktor, he could have watched his performance with his own eyes, as an equal. Instead, he looked on from afar on a flat screen in his family inn as a mere fan.

 

Usually, watching Viktor skate filled Yuuri with joy and inspiration. But this time, Yuuri could only feel a numb ache in his limbs and a hollow emptiness in his heart. Viktor was still so beautiful, so perfect and Yuuri just wanted to look away.

 

(But he didn’t, because it was _Viktor_ , and Yuuri doesn’t think that he will ever be able to avert his eyes. No matter how painful it is to watch Viktor dance and shine without a care in the world.)

 

His soul-less attitude and inability to bring forth any real drive when training eventually led to Minako’s ‘harmless’ idea that Yuuri ‘take a break and get a hobby.’

 

_(“Take some time away. Find something to take your mind off skating and dancing for a bit. Clear your mind, rest, then come back stronger.”)_

 

It took until mid April--nearly a whole month--before Yuuri decided to take his teacher’s advice and tried to find a hobby. Hopelessly unaware of anything beyond his small world of skates and dance, Yuuri turned to the internet for ideas.

 

Which leads Yuuri back to his current dilemma.

 

While researching online for a feasible hobby, Yuuri had chanced across an interesting ad that had directed him to a gamer’s message board announcing the release of 1,000 Beta-test of the first full-dive Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game or VRMMORPG as is was abbreviated.

 

(Yuuri had to look up what the acronym meant. Really, where do they come up with these names?)

 

The site went on to say that on May first, there would be an online raffle to randomly select one thousand people to participate in the beta-test of a virtual reality game coming out later in the year. The participants would be collected based on a series of general questions and off of the speed at which the hopefuls filled in the questionnaire.

 

Yuuri didn’t know much about gaming or virtual reality at all but he was...interested to say the least.

 

Which was why he was up late at night on a school night, waiting for the last three minutes before midnight to pass, debating if he should even try in the first place.

 

Surely, there were other hobbies that Yuuri could try. And does he really need one in the first place? He knows that he is stagnating but maybe he should just try harder…

 

_30 seconds left._

 

Or maybe Minako-sensei is right and Yuuri just needs to take a break.

 

_20 seconds left._

 

Yuuri sighs once again.

 

“It’s not like it will make a difference if I play or not since I am not making any progress anyway. If I don’t get one, then it was not meant to be and I’ll just keep practicing.”

 

_10 seconds left._

 

_5 seconds left..._

 

_3..._

 

_2..._

 

_1._

 

Yuuri refreshed the page and filled in the required fields as fast as he physically could.

 

~o~

 

**CONGRATULATIONS,** **Katsuki Yuuri** **!**

**You have won the 678th beta-test**

**Copy for Sword Art Online!**

 

**Thank you for your participation.**

 

**All relevant forms requiring your signature (and Parental Approval**

**Based on your entered age) will be delivered to**

**Your preferred address within**

**Two weeks time.**

 

**Please fill in the required information and**

**Submit the paperwork to**

**The indicated address no later than May 20th.**

 

**Only after you have signed and submitted all required paperwork**

**Will your NerveGear and copy of the game**

**Be delivered.**

 

**The Beta-test will begin on June 1st,**

**One month from today.**

 

**Congratulations once again,**

**ARGUS, Inc.**

 

~o~

 

It’s not until the last week of May, with the glossy cover of the beta test in one hand and the prototype-NerveGear hardware in the other, that Yuuri actually believed that he had managed to win and that he was indeed about to play a game based in a virtual world.

 

The most Yuuri had ever experienced of VR technology was the one action movie that Takeshi convinced him to watch together with him and Yuuko. He had worn the VR goggles over his glasses and got to experience the searing flames and debris of exploding buildings from a front row seat. (Thank you _so_ much Takeshi.)

 

Maybe he should be worried, concerned about the game he was about to take part in. It was obviously an action/adventure game and “Sword” basically meant that it was going to be a fighting game. Yuuri has never been one for any sort of violence.

 

(And would he have to wear his glasses in the game? Would his eyesight be as bad as in reality? Would he even get the option to _use_ his glasses? What if he played and couldn’t even see anything? What if he couldn’t even see the swords coming at his face--)

 

He knows that he should be worried, but…

 

_(“You’ve never tried before! How would you know if you don't try?”)_

 

Yuuko’s words from years before echo in his mind. If he hadn’t tried he never would have found the ice that he loves so much--even if right now it is too painful to think of ever skating again. And who knows...maybe he’ll like it?

 

So it’s okay to be excited, right? At least Vicchan ( _loyal, comforting, forever constant Vicchan)_ seems to think so as he yips and jumps happily all around Yuuri’s feet as he clenches the game in his arms and tries to silently creep up the stairs to his room and not alert anyone to the shaky smile forming on his face.

 

(Judging by Mari’s raised eyebrows and his mother’s knowing closed eye smile at dinner later that evening Yuuri knows that he failed miserably.)

 

~o~

 

June 1st came both slower and faster than Yuuri expected, fluctuating with Yuuri’s mood regarding the game. If he was excited, time moved at the speed of lazy sloths in middle of hibernation. (Do sloths actually _hibernate_? Yuuri doesn’t even know--) When he was anxious of the outcome of the game, time warped and reality distorted until hours turned into seconds.

 

But regardless of his struggles, three pm on June 1st approached surely as Yuuri sat on his bed with his headgear secured on and ready; Vicchan curled and tucked snugly beside him on his modest twin size bed.

 

Only 30 seconds before the beta-test launch time. Lying back, Yuuri adjusted his pillows and got comfortable.

 

“Be back in a bit okay, Vicchan.” Yuuri gave his toy poodle an affectionate pat on the head; Vicchan moving so that he was now resting on top of Yuuri’s stomach. “Wish me luck.”

 

Vicchan gave a small huff and licked Yuuri’s hand, rearranging himself to face Yuuri’s door, small paws and fluffy tail tucked underneath and around himself.

 

Giving one last smile, Yuuri reclined his head against his pillow, closed his eyes, and counted down the remaining 5 seconds in his mind.

 

4…

 

3…

 

2…

 

1.

 

**“[Link Start!]”**

 

~o~

 

**Day 1:** Registration

The black world behind Yuuri’s eyes brighten instantly to white. Far off in the distance, he could see pillars of vibrant colors streaming forward to meet him, eventually filling his line of sight as they rushed past him only to disappear and be replaced with multiple blue screens before him.

 

One of the screens read **[TUTORIAL]** and Yuuri wasted no time pressing **[BEGIN]** ; not willing to allow his discomfort with this new experience to take over his mind. Better to focus on one thing at a time.

 

_(Yeah, let’s not think about the fact that he was currently floating in a completely white virtual dimension (that doesn’t seem to know the purpose of a floor!) with flashing magical screens appearing before his face--And where is that music coming from?!)_

 

A computer generated female voice burst forward from...somewhere and preceded to walk him through the stages of registration: how to navigate the menu, choose his character name, and alter the outward appearance of his avatar being only a few of the instructions given to him in the short tour.

 

After performing some basic commands of the menu--proving that he was capable of using it--Yuuri was given free reign to begin creating his avatar. It was only then that Yuuri realize how little he had prepared for this.

 

_Why didn’t he pick out a name beforehand?_ Yuuri searched his mind and tried to come up with something, anything that sounded like a game player’s name. _What was the name of that one game he heard his classmates talk about a few years ago? Zaldo?...Zolda?...Wait. Wasn’t that supposed to be a girl’s name? Yuuri doesn’t_ **_know._ ** _Would it be wrong if he just put his real name?_

 

Yuuri typed his own name into the appropriate bar and simply looked at it. The formal kanji,勇利, clearly reflected back at him. “Courage” it read; strong, brave, inspiring and everything that Yuuri wasn’t. He rewrote his name, only this time in English: YUURI.

 

While ‘Yuuri’ felt better, this still didn’t feel right. Try as he might he couldn’t think of a single name that appealed to him (beside Viktor but he couldn’t take that name from the actual skater as well as his precious dog.)

 

In the end, Yuuri decide to look within himself and find out what he was trying to get out of this game in the first place. Why is he playing? What does he want? He approached the problem the same way he had when choosing his theme for his programs.

 

He had found the Beta-test information by chance while trying to take a break. But Yuuri was still skating and dancing--(a very small amount, comparatively, buts who’s counting)--so he wasn’t so much as taking a break from his sport as he was...what taking a break from himself? From being Yuuri?

 

_Yeah...That sounds right. He wants to escape, to leave Yuuri behind and be something better, something not broken and flawed like he is in reality. Someone the opposite of all his is._

 

Yuuri studied his name on the screen once again, then reached out and slightly rearranged the letters; YUURI becoming RIYUU when he reversed the order of the syllables.

 

Head tilting to the side, Yuuri contemplated the sounds, eventually forsaking the ‘I’ and creating ‘RYUU.’

 

Ryuu. Ryū. ‘Dragon.’ Powerful, strong, fierce, unyielding, legendary. Nothing like himself, yet representing everything he wants to be.

 

_It’s perfect._

 

Accepting this as his new name, Yuuri moved forward with customizing his character. Opening the character customization menu, an identical hologram of Yuuri appeared in front of him. The hologram had its gaze focused straight ahead and expression blank like a doll.

 

_(He tried not to think how much this expression must have matched the one he wore on the ice on_ **that** _day.)_

 

Attempting to stick with his theme, Yuuri tried to think of any appearance that would be the opposite of himself. He didn’t even realize that his fingers were already filling in the parameters until he saw the image in front of him begin to shift.

 

His clone glowed brightly as it grew and changed before him. When the light faded, Yuuri clamped his hands over his mouth in order to keep the unholy shriek that threatened to burst forward. This, however, did nothing to stop the red that sprouted across his face, spreading from the tip of one ear to the other.

 

Before him, stood the Japanese equivalent of the seventeen year old previous Junior World’s Gold medalist, complete with dazzling, sky blue eyes and long, shimmering locks of silver hair.

 

(Yuuri is suddenly _very_ glad that this game is in a whole other reality otherwise he knows that Mari and Minako would never let him live this down.)

 

Beginning to reset the categories a thought occurred to Yuuri. He wanted to be the opposite of himself, right? Wouldn’t the person most unlike Yuuri be...Viktor? Then wouldn’t it be correct to use him as at least the base of his avatar?

 

Resolved, Yuuri decided to keep most of the parameters the same, only changing the age to 18 and lightening the hair to a slightly more snowy silver (a homage to the beautiful ice that tied Yuuri and Viktor together).

 

The length of the hair was another matter altogether, though. If this was going to be a fighting game with 99.9% realism, Yuuri did _not_ want to die just because his hair got in the way. Given that his personal experiences with braiding hair began and ended when he somehow tied a knot so tight it required his sister to chop off most of her hair, Yuuri knew that he needed to make the hair more manageable.

 

In the end, the hairstyle resembled a slightly messy A-line cut stopping just beneath his ears and with a small tail of hair at the nape of the neck that just barely touched the area between his shoulder blades--(a homage to Viktor’s long hair because Viktor wouldn’t be _Viktor_ without his long hair).

 

Filling in the last required fields of his account name and password--(Yuuri just used generic one from one of his emails)--Yuuri took in the image of his new self before him. He gave it a small smile.

 

“Shall we go then, _Ryuu?_ ”

 

**Do you wish to log in as:**

**RYUU (M)?**

**Yes** **No**

 

One last breath. One more moment to steel himself. Yuuri pressed the affirmative. The world faded to gray as one final screen appeared:

 

**Welcome to**

**Sword  Art  Online!!!**

 

~o~

 

**Day 1:** A Whole New World

_Well, at least  it looks like I won’t be needing glasses,_ Yuuri thinks a little hysterically as he gawks at the very clear, very _large_ structure of the flying fortress, **[Aincrad]** , nestled between the mid-afternoon clouds. The promotional videos had in no way done justice to the sheer size and beauty of the castle. As Yuuri was slowly transported from the blank no-space he had previously inhabited to the Area labeled in the guide as **[The Town of Beginnings]** , Yuuri tried to take in as much of Aincrad as he could.

 

Gleaming metal platforms covered the entire ellipsoid structure, accentuating the 100 floors of Sword Art Online. About twenty floors from the bottom, a ring extended from the fortress, housing tall vertical spires at the end. The ring was flat and almost looked like it was made to receive aircrafts and helicopters.

 

As Yuuri’s journey was reaching the end, he caught a glimpse of a red building at the very peak of the floating behemoth that reminded him of his hometown’s local landmark, Hasetsu Castle.

.

.

.

**[The Town of Beginnings]** was a stunning mixture between mid-century European architecture and middle Eastern Bazaar-styled markets. There was constant movement along the brick laid streets and stone buildings. Excited players and NPC’s rushed around, trying to find out as much as they could about this new world and trying to sell their wares to new players respectively.

 

Despite it being late-afternoon back home, here it seemed as if the day was barely starting. It was as busy and loud as the fish markets that his father had on occasion taken him to and the air was as filled with excitement and cheer as during the summer festivals of his childhood.

 

The town was breath-takingly beautiful. The town square where he had first appeared only beginning to describe the wonders and shocking realism around him.

 

Yuuri would be content to just wander around the market and see all of the different items from this world. There was so much to see and the breeze that passed by him held a hint of something delicious. For the first time in a long while, Yuuri wanted to run towards something, explore and discover the world around him.

 

But then Yuuri noticed a group of female characters gathered together and pointing in his direction.

 

_Oh no, was he already being labeled as an outcast? Is he going to be shunned, even here? Will he never escape the_ horror _that was social hierarchy?_

 

Yuuri wanted to avert his eyes and awkwardly shuffle away--and he was just about to do so--when he caught a glimpse of his reflection in a shiny platinum shield on the display table of a nearby merchant cart.

 

Sky-blue eyes and silver-white hair greet him and he is reminded that he is not _Yuuri_ right now, but _Ryuu_.

 

Yuuri might run away and try to escape or ignore his problems for as long as possible, but wasn’t the point of making Ryuu to be someone else, someone better?

 

So how should Ryuu react? What should Ryuu do?

 

...

 

_What would Viktor do?_

 

_..._

 

_(Then again, Viktor is always surprising Yuuri, from his themes and costumes to his jump combinations and choreography. How could_ **_he_ ** _ever know what Viktor was going to do next?)_

 

_..._

 

In the end, Yuuri went with his gut instinct and gave one of the “smile-and-wave” combinations that he had seen Viktor give the audience and his fans after completing a performance, even going so far as to give a small wink in their general direction.

 

Judging from the girls’ _(and was that a guy?)_ red faces, Yuuri figured that maybe he had not looked as awkward as he had felt.

 

At least they’re not pointing and just staring at him anymore. That counts for something, right?

 

Through sheer will and no small amount of stubbornness, Yuuri kept the smile on his face and tried to casually make his way towards one of the shops in the distance.

 

The group didn’t follow him, instead devolving into hushed whispers and covered mouths, their faces still red. But they weren’t following him and that was the escape Yuuri was looking for in the first place so he couldn’t complain.

 

He resolved to practice the Smile-and-Wave maneuver later on in his own time in order to do it _(Viktor)_ justice.

 

_For now though_ , he turns his eyes to the bustling and sparkling city around him, the excitement from before rising in his chest once again, _there’s a whole new world to explore._

 

It was time for Yuuri--no, _Ryuu_ \--to begin his journey.

 

~o~

 

It was well past midnight when Yuuri opened his eyes once again in reality only to be smothered in puppy kisses by an excited Vicchan the moment he opened his eyes.

 

“W-wait! Vicchan, h-hold on a second!” Yuuri unsuccessfully tried to remove from his chest and face but he imagines that the small laughter he felt coming out of his mouth and the fingers curling in dark brown fur did nothing to enforce the idea that he actually wanted his dog to leave. “Okay, okay. I missed you, too, okay? But, we have to be quiet, everyone is still probably sleeping.”

 

Vicchan whined softly and nuzzled into Yuuri’s neck, clearly happy that his owner was awake.

 

After making a quick trip to the restroom, Yuuri stopped by the kitchen in order to get a small snack. It was there that Yuuri saw a wrapped bowl with a small card attached to it.

 

_Hope you had fun, Yuuri! Have something to eat when you wake up!_

__Mom_ _

 

 

Unwrapping the bowl, Yuuri found a smaller version of his mother’s famous katsudon--his favorite dish.

 

Treading as quietly as possible, Yuuri re-heated the meal and silently returned to his room where Vicchan was waiting for him. With the katsudon in his hands, Yuuri sat himself down at the head of his bed, Vicchan automatically coming to sit directly in front of Yuuri.

 

“I don’t think that I am going to be able to sleep for a bit. Do you mind staying up with me for a little bit longer?”

 

Vicchan made a quite little huff and gave Yuuri his full attention, large black eyes glowing slightly from the moonlight shining through Yuuri’s window.

 

“Thanks, Vicchan. How about I tell you about the game? I can’t tell anyone about what happens in there because of the Non-Disclosure Agreement, but you won’t tell anyone, right?”

 

Head tilted to the side and a small pink tongue falling out of an open jaw, Vicchan simply sits patiently and listens as Yuuri tells him about the “amazing, beautiful, and unbelievable” world of SAO.

 

~o~

 

**Day 3:** The Forming of a Party

_Maybe this was not such a good idea,_ Yuuri derisively thinks as he frantically runs away from a horde of **[Frenzy Wolves]**.

 

It was on Yuuri’s third day that he finally entered the fields around the **[Town of Beginning]**. Most of the other players had already begun making great strides in learning how the game works, finding tricks and items that will allow them to get stronger. Some have even managed to make it to the next town.

 

It’s not that Yuuri doesn’t want to try to go out and fight, it’s just...Yuuri has never played a game before and even with the instructions on how to activate the games’ **[Sword Skills]** , Yuuri just can’t get it to work. He has no understanding of the gamer slang and therefore lacks the necessary common sense regarding the game’s mechanisms.

 

After many failed attempts on his first and second day, Yuuri guessed that the skills could not be used in the town itself and decided to venture out into the fields the following day.

 

Which led to him running for his life from a pack of overgrown, feral canines the size of small horses.

 

Try as he might, Yuuri could not get the **[Sword Skills]** to activate. Not wanting to die, all Yuuri could do was run and hope that he could make it back to the **[Safe Area]** before the monsters caught up to him.

 

Glancing over his shoulder to assess the pursuing horde turned out to be a huge mistake as Yuuri found himself tripping over a small divot in the field and face-planting into the grassy meadow.

 

Turning to sit on his backside, Yuuri watched with wide eyes as the pack began to descend upon him.

 

He wanted to close his eyes, he wanted to move, but he could feel it--the cold, the numbness, the fear--beginning to encroach upon his heart. He knew he couldn’t do anything, that he was going to die. He tightly shut his eyes.

 

…

 

_(What did it feel like to die?)_

 

…

 

Before Yuuri could think any farther on his demise, he heard a loud cry and opened his eye in time to see a blue stream of light that slashed through the surrounding mob, shattering them into small fragments of rainbow-colored shards. Once the falling pixels cleared, Yuuri could see the back of a male player slowly sheathing his blade into the holster that he wore across his back.

 

“Hey, you alright?” The man turned around and addressed Yuuri.

 

He appeared to be around the same age as Yuuri’s avatar his dark raven hair and eyes. His hair was about as short as Yuuri’s own was in the real world expect it was parted to weigh more heavily over the player’s right eye. The equipment he had seemed to be the same as Yuuri’s own with some additions that Yuuri can only assume carried some benefits for the player.

 

“Sorry for taking your kill, but it looked like you needed some help.”

 

Coming out of his stupor, Yuuri realized that he was still sitting on the floor as the player stood a few feet in front of him now. While he slowly rose to his feet, Yuuri’s mind worked at lightspeed, trying to find an appropriate response for Ryuu to give.

 

Giving the widest smile that he could manage, Yuuri addressed the man.

 

“It’s fine, actually I should be thanking you. I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I actually came out here to practice using the **[Sword Skills]** , but before I knew it those wolves had already started coming after me.”

 

_Idiot! Stop talking! He didn’t ask for your life story!_ Yuuri mentally berates himself and scrambles to find something to say before the player before him realizes just how hopeless he is. Already he can feel his face growing warm in embarrassment.

 

“Hmmm...Is this the first Virtual Reality game you’ve played? The instructions are pretty straightforward and it’s already the third day. Most players have figured out the basics by now.”

 

_(See, look what you did! Now he thinks you’re weak_ **_and_ ** _stupid!)_

 

“...haha...yeah. First game ever actually.”

 

_(Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP! Stop talking, you’ll only make it worse!)_

 

Yuuri tried to give the biggest and brightest smile he could to hide his shame behind a layer of false cheer. He could literally _feel_ the tension in his lips from stretching so wide.

 

The player is staring at him with a slightly slacked jaw and eyes blown wide.

 

“W-wait, what was-” The teenage player’s eyes go out of focus for a moment--seeming to analyze the area around Yuuri’s face--before he roughly shakes his head. “Nevermind. Well...if you are having problems then I don’t mind teaching you about the game.”

 

Yuuri blinks rapidly. “Really? Won’t that just hinder your process?”

 

“Not really. You said you don’t know much about games, but do you at least know that you have to fight a really strong monster, a boss, before you can move up to the next floor?”

 

Yuuri nods his head--listening intently and shocked that this boy still wants to be around Yuuri after he almost got himself killed from incompetence.

 

“Well, when fighting against the boss, usually it is done in groups of called ‘parties.’ The **[party]** usually has about 6 players in it but there have been some games where there was more or less allowed. Anyway, these parties usually work together to fight the boss in what’s called a **[Raid]**.”

 

“That makes sense.” _Much more than just one player against a boss._ Yuuri feels like talking with this player has been much more informative than any other assistance he has been given by the manual so far. _They should have had_ **_him_ ** _do the tutorial in the beginning instead of that disembodied voice._

 

“So you see, that is why I don’t mind partying with you for a bit. I will get a better feel of Sword Art Online’s party system for when I fight the boss and you get to learn how to play the game. So we would be helping each other.”

 

The player swiped down his right hand, opening his menu and pressing some icons. Yuuri considered it an accomplishment when he only slightly twitched when a grey screen appeared and floated in front of him.

 

**Invite!**

**Kirito has invited you to join his party!**

**Do you accept?**

**Accept**               **Decline**

 

“So what do you say?” The player--Kirito, he now knew--gave a cocky smirk and tilted his head to the side as he waited for Yuuri’s answer.

 

Yuuri didn’t want to be a burden, he didn’t want anyone to see how bad he was, but if Kirito himself is asking…

 

“Just until I get the basics down, okay? I don’t want to hold you back more than I have to.”

 

Yuuri accepted. He noticed a small green **[HP bar]** show up underneath his own in the upper left-hand corner of his vision. Returning his eyes to his temporary partner, Yuuri found Kirito still sporting his crooked smile. For some strange reason, Yuuri could feel his own (if hesitant) smirk rising to match his.

 

“Okay. Looking forward to working with you, Ryuu.”

 

“You too, Kirito.”

 

~o~

 

**Day 6:** A Seed called Hope

There is no doubt this time; Yuuri is panicking and he is going to die.

 

It had started out simple enough. Kirito had helped Yuuri power up to Level 3 over the past three days and had decided Yuuri ready to try a new hunting area with stronger monsters.

 

Training with Kirito was an experience of and within itself. While able to explain the sword skills frighteningly well, Kirito seemed to think that one demonstration was enough to understand the process of making the skill work and was more than a little confused when Yuuri kept asking him to repeat a simple trust and slash movement over and over again. But Kirito was kind and patience enough to put up with Yuuri’s request.

 

Yuuri didn’t know what it was about holding the sword--maybe it was because he had never been particularly good at any that required adequate hand-eye coordination--but he did not feel comfortable wielding the sword in the traditional manner Kirito showed him.

 

Yes, he was able to get the skill to activate after being properly instructed, but that didn’t stop the feeling of _wrong,awkward_ he got when he held his blade. Kirito gave Yuuri many confused and bemused glances when he caught sight of Yuuri practicing the motions without activating the skill itself.

 

But this was normal behavior for Yuuri. When he was first learning to dance, Minako-sensei had him repeat position after position for hours, days, _weeks_ before she finally allowed him to learn something new.

 

And when he was learning to skate, the first thing they taught him was how to fall.

 

_(“You’re going to fall a lot when you skate, Yuu-kun, so first you have to learn_ how _to fall so that you won’t get hurt later when you can move faster and jump higher.”)_

 

In both cases, Yuuri was worked to the bone until positions flowed as easily as water and he could take a tumble across the ice and quickly get up again. When he became comfortable with the basics, he was able to _(slowly)_ improve.

 

It was not yet like that with the heavy and sharp sword in his hand. It didn’t feel natural. So Yuuri did what he does best: he practiced and practiced, hoping to make the motions second nature. No matter how different the actions felt when compared with his more graceful but no less rigid movements in dance and ballet.

 

It was when Yuuri was starting to see some improvement that Kirito asked if he wanted to try out a new field. Not really confident, but not wanting to hold his _(partner?teacher?)_ party member back, Yuuri had agreed.

 

The fighting--“grinding,” Kirito had called it--had gone rather well in the beginning. They had purchased a fair amount of recovery potions just in case and made sure to only fight one of the monsters first to be sure that they could defeat it at their current level.

 

They were currently fighting in a forest area just south of **[Caelfall]** , the third town that Yuuri and Kirito had chanced upon while exploring the first floor of Aincrad.

 

The monsters they were currently fighting, **[Fallen Yggdrasil]** , were essentially small, walking trees that used their vines and branches to attack players. The whip-like vines were barbed with sharp thorns that could easily slice through the bark of the surrounding forest trees.

 

Even though the walking tree was only about 6 feet tall--a little taller than his current form--the menacing smile jaggedly carved into the bulk of it’s body would have been enough to make Yuuri want to run and hide if he was alone.

 

But he wasn’t alone, so Kirito and Yuuri utilized the **[switch]** function of the party system, the two switching off on who would distract and who would attack, steadily reducing the monsters HP bar.

 

After defeating ten monsters (of which Yuuri somehow managed to destroy three), the two decided to call it a day and head back to town. Yuuri was happy with his progress, gaining a little confidence. While he still felt unsure using the steel blade, he felt that he at least wouldn’t unintentionally hurt himself or others with his lack of skills.

 

It was while turning his back to address his party member that it happened.

 

Apparently, the **[Fallen Yggdrasil Boss]** had an additional skill: camouflage.

 

Kirito’s eyes widened and he shouted out in alarm, prompting Yuuri to look behind himself. In place of the ordinary tree that Yuuri had just passed, stood a rapidly transforming eight foot tall Yggdrasil, it’s viney appendages the width of one of Yuuri’s legs in position to skewer him.

 

Standing within 5 feet of the wooden creature, Yuuri could smell it breadth--a mixture of sweet nectar and rotten and molded wood--as the monster loomed over Yuuri with is wicked smile.

 

And Yuuri could feel it, the mind-numbing fear. Could feel it’s slow, crawling descent down his spine and through his limbs, stilling his movements and stealing his breath.

 

Just like on _that day,_ Yuuri couldn’t do anything in his terror. He could only watch as the rotten vines were cast downward, aiming for his head and sides. To the side, he noticed Kirito running towards him, mouth opening and closing rapidly as he yelled for Yuuri to do move.

 

_There’s no point,_ Yuuri thinks as his vision starts to shrink and narrow until all he can see is the gaping maw of the boss. _I can’t move out of the way and Kirito is too far to reach me in time to be any help._

 

_I’m going to die._

 

_I am just going to die like this, stuck, unable to do anything._

 

_I’m going to_ **_die. I am going to die. Going to diediediedieDIEDIE--!!!_ **

 

...

 

**_[Don't worry. You’re safe. Just breathe.]_ **

 

...

 

All but blacked out in the midst of his attack, the voice rang out as barely more than a whisper. The words were said so quietly, that if the world hadn’t fallen silent just moments before, he is sure that he wouldn’t have caught them at all.

 

Before Yuuri was able to question what was happening _(to question why there is another new voice in his head--)_ , the world around Yuuri whiplashed and came sharply into existence once more. Like the panic attack had already passed and the effects already subsided. The fear was gone--and that alone should have frightened him _because it was never that easy to move and breathe again_ \--

 

“--yuu!!! Block it!!”

 

\--and Yuuri suddenly found time and sound resuming all around him.

 

His situation had not changed: He was still about to be killed by the giant **[Yggdrasil]** , his sword was still sheathed, and Kirito still much too far away to make a difference.

 

It was hopeless. There was no point in even trying. It was just a game. It’s normal to die in a game. All of these facts echoed in his mind and he knew he should just give up, but…

 

_...I don’t want to die like this._

 

Whatever had stopped his panic attack from escalating may have erased his fear, but without that fear, the stubborn streak and fierce pride that Yuuri held deep within himself had no problems coming forth. And deep down, Yuuri knows that more than anything, he hates to lose.

 

_And if I am going to lose, it’s not going to be to an overgrown shrub!_

 

Mind clear and focused--for what felt like the first time in months--Yuuri observed approaching attack and...moved.

 

He just let his mind and body go, focusing only on not getting hit, uncaring of _how_ he did it. He bent and spun as he was trained by his sensei, the vines harmlessly slipping past his sides and overhead as he bent backward to avoid the mid-chest attacks.

 

Clearly frustrated, the rotten log tried to aim at Yuuri’s feet in order to restrain him. Without thinking, Yuuri gathered as much speed and strength he could summon, judged his distance from his desired landing area, and launched into a triple toe-loop, jumping over the low-sweeping attack.

 

In the middle of his second rotation, Yuuri drew his blade and on his final rotation, Yuuri found himself suspended in the air before the **[Yggdrasil Boss]**. Not noticing the faint blue glow surrounding his blade, Yuuri struck the monster clean across it’s face and right between it’s hollow black eyes.

 

As he landed back on the floor--weapon held at the ready for a counter-attack--the monster let out a loud cry. At the same moment, the system alerted Yuuri to the fact that he had landed a critical attack, scoring 800 points of damage to the mob boss.

 

The boss only had a HP of 750.

 

With wide eyes, Yuuri watched as the monster began to short-circuit and eventually shatter.

 

Yuuri blinked. He looked back at Kirito. His face was the picture of disbelief and extreme confusion, mouth frozen in a perfect ‘O’ and eyes as wide as saucers. His hand was hovering over his sword and he kept turning his gaze towards Yuuri and back towards the place where the walking tree had been.

 

Absently, he opened the notification floating in front of him.

 

Huh. Yuuri had just shot up two levels.

 

“...what?”

 

~o~

 

Walking back towards town, Yuuri tries his best to not think about the whole affair that just happened. But it was hard to do when every little thing was reminding him of it; from his HP bar displaying his new level to Kirito’s curious gaze on his back.

 

He just wanted to forget about it. He had come here to escape Yuuri’s problems but they had found him, even here.

 

(Yuuri stubbornly refuses to recognize the voice that calmed him down as anything more than a momentary whisper of his imagination. _It did_ **_not_ ** _happen_.)

 

He just need to get back to town without Kirito asking him anything, then he can logout in peace and just go back to avoiding his problems the way he did before because this is obviously _not working and he needs to run away--_

 

“Hey, about what happened just now…” Kirito began.

 

_(Nononono, don’t ask, don’t make me think about it, don’t make me lie, don't make me tell the_ **_truth_ ** _, oh god is Kirito going to judge me too? Is he going to treat me differently because I am weak, stupid, A N X I O U S, Yuuri and not Ryuu, not the semi-competent player who doesn't mess everything up? No. Not that. Please, ask anything but that. Don't ask, don't ask, stopstop_ **_stop_ ** _\--)_

 

“--ow were you able to move like that? At first it looked like you froze for a second--maybe a system bug--but then you were jumping and flying all over. I’ve never seen a **[skill]** like that.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Kirito was watching Yuuri closely, not accusingly, but like he was trying to figure out a puzzle or difficult math problem.

 

“The way you moved,” he elaborated, “It looked too clean and practiced to be you just dodging, but I haven’t seen a skill like that before. Your sword even glowed, like you activated a skill, but you definitely weren’t in position to activate one. So, how did you do it?”

 

“T-that’s, well, you see--” Yuuri didn’t know what to say, how to answer.

 

(He didn’t ask. Thank God, Kirito didn’t ask me why I froze!

 

_...Why didn’t he ask?_ )

 

“Ryuu?”

 

Caught up in his thoughts, Yuuri responded to Kirito on autopilot, not considering the repercussion of his answer.

 

“It wasn’t a skill. I just reacted. I was just trying to dodge and I do ballet, so that just ended up happening...”

 

“Ballet?” Kirito is looking at Yuuri strangely now and oh, he recognizes that face. It was the face worn by his classmates when they found out he liked to dance and skate. As if he was less than human just because he liked something that “only girls did,” that was only for the _weak and girly._

 

He didn’t pay them any mind. What did they know of how hard and how long Minako and Yuuko worked to have the skills they have? What did they know of hard _Yuuri_ worked for his skill? They understood nothing, so their words meant  _nothing_.

 

_(It hurts, it hurts so much. It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, please, stop hurting me--)_

 

Yuuri is not ashamed of his ability. Dance means more to him than he will ever be able to put into words, but. But just this once, he wanted to see if he could make a friend if he wasn’t so different.

 

The realization that he wanted Kirito to be his friend struck him hard and fast. Yes, he wanted this boy to be his friend but hindsight is twenty-twenty and a careless confession was going to ruin everything.

 

_He is going to leave,_ Yuuri think sadly. _He going to leave and it is all my fault and--_

 

“It was really awesome.”

 

_\--what?_

 

Yuuri rips his gaze off the ground where he had unconsciously sent it and regarded Kirito with barely concealed bafflement.

 

Kirito’s eyes are glazed over as he looks at the area just beside Yuuri’s face.

 

“It’s actually really amazing if you think about it.” he continues on, completely oblivious to the gigantic earthquake his words were making inside of Yuuri’s mind. “I know that ballet dancers have to train intensively, but for you to be able to replicate it in SAO is unbelievable. No, maybe not. Maybe you just to have the image firmly planted in your mind from hours of repeated practice. That would explain how you were able to bend that way. I didn’t even think it was _possible_ to bend your spine that far backwards. Maybe its a matter of the brain’s perception..?”

 

The dark haired man’s brow furrowed in contemplation as he trailed off.

 

“Let’s test it out.”

 

Without warning, Kirito attempted an impromptu back-bend, holding it for a few seconds, only to lose balance and land flat on his back as his legs fell out from underneath him.

 

“K-Kirito?!”

 

“Oooow… okay, definitely a limit of the brain. The second I thought that I wouldn’t know how to do it in reality I lost balance. Until then I was fine. But, damn it was hard to keep focused. Probably not something I’ll be able to use in a fight right away.”

 

Still lying on his back on the grassy field, arms spread out on either side of him, Kirito looks at Yuuri with bright eyes and a large childlike smile. Yuuri is still to shocked to react more than stare back.

 

“It was really amazing, Ryuu. I didn’t know ballet could be so useful. Almost makes me want to learn some for myself...”

 

Eyes widening in realization, Kirito springs to his feet and clamps his hands over a shell-shocked Yuuri’s shoulders.

 

“We should test it out! It probably won’t be possible in reality, but I may be able to learn some in the game. What do you think?”

 

“You--you want to learn ballet?!” Yuuri sputters.

 

_(Doesn’t he think that its strange? Why_ doesn’t _he think its strange?)_

 

“Ryuu,” Kirito starts seriously. “You scored 800 points of damage in one hit and dodged attacks coming at you at twice the speed your agility stat should have allowed. I would learn to _hula dance_ if it meant I could do the same.”

 

Yuuri doesn’t know if he should laugh or cry in this moment. Instead, he keeps his face locked in surprise and says one last time, because he has to be sure.

 

“But, its _ballet._ ” Emphasis obviously required.

 

“And?” Kirito responds, as if the term means nothing, as if it doesn’t carry all of Yuuri’s heart and love and worries and pain.

 

In his chest, Yuuri can feel a small seed--something that feels suspiciously like _hope_ \--and because he _enjoys_ torturing himself, he looks straight into Kirito’s eyes--heart bared in a way he knows he shouldn’t because it will only lead to rejection and pain--and asks softly, “Is that really all you want to ask?”

 

Emotions flash across Kirito’s face and Yuuri applauds himself on being able to recognize them all: confusion, remembrance, understanding, sadness. But as quickly as these emotions flash across his face, Yuuri does not have time to react to the _unneeded pity_ , before Kirito eyes hardened in determination as he clenches the hands he still rested on Yuuri’s shoulders.

 

Finally letting him go, Kirito steps back, his mouth pulling up into a smirk even as his eyes transform, becoming unfairly kind.

 

“That’s all that should matter, right?”

 

And just like that, Yuuri cannot stop the seed of hope growing in his chest and stealing his breath away.

 

It didn’t matter, not to Kirito. Not his dancing, not the hours he spent straining and practicing on blistered and bruised feet for the sake of his craft. And not the anxiety that Yuuri know he has to face one day, but not _today_.

 

Kirito doesn’t expect anything--doesn’t ask--and maybe he doesn’t know just how bad Yuuri can get at his worst moments, but he understands the fact that Yuuri needed space, that he came here to escape, that he didn’t want to talk. And Kirito _respected_ his wish, without him even asking. He is not judging him, not treating him any different. Yuuri is still Ryuu to him and Yuuri is so grateful.

 

_(I still have a place here. I am still accepted. I don’t have to leave.)_

 

Kirito saw a piece of himself--a piece that usually made others turn away--and stayed. He found a piece of Yuuri inside of Ryuu and had accepted it. Maybe, just maybe, it was possible that Yuuri could show more of himself and it would be okay. Maybe, at the end, Kirito would still be willing to know him.

 

Normally, Yuuri would run from such a gamble--with so much for him to lose--but somehow he felt that it was okay to try, to trust, at least this much for now. He didn’t need to hide behind fake smiles and forced laughs. He wanted to show more pieces of Yuuri to this person and he hoped (prayed) that they would be accepted.

 

Letting out a small laugh and shaking his head back and forth, Yuuri finally answered Kirito’s question.

 

“I don’t know how much I will be able to teach you let alone how much you will be able to learn, but if that’s what you want and I don’t mind teaching you some tricks. Be warned though, it won’t be easy.”

 

He gives the dark haired man a small, honest smile, eyes crinkling as his feelings of gratitude are probably reflected there clearly. He feels that this is the first real smile that he has managed in over a year. The thought alone, that he is able to truly smile again increases his joy and widens his smile even more.

 

“But not now. Let’s start on it tomorrow. I don’t know about you, but I feel tired enough to sleep for a month.”

 

_Given the emotional roller coaster that today has been,_ Yuuri observes, _I won’t be surprised if I sleep for the rest of the day. Sleep sounds wonderful right now._

 

Turning around once he realizes that Kirito is not following him back towards town, Yuuri finds Kirito looking at Yuuri’s face in a strangely familiar manner. It takes a moment to place but then he recalls it as the look Kirito had given upon his first meeting. Like there was something on his face.

 

“How are you doing that?” he sighs desperately. “I can understand the dancing movements being translated to game mechanics, but this? _How?_ ”

 

Yuuri is thoroughly confused. “What am I doing?”

 

If anything, the response make Kirito look even more pained and worn out. His forehead cradled in one hand, he raise the other as he retorts, “Ah, nevermind. Let’s do what you said and just head back to town.”

 

Though reluctant to leave the subject alone, Yuuri is reassured when Kirito gives him a light tap on his back, cocky smirk once again in place.

 

And if Yuuri chooses to ignore the mumbles of “--unconscious. He does it _unconsciously--_ ” and “--wonder if we can weaponize it--” he can hear from Kirito on the trek back, well, that is no ones business but his own.

 

He starting something new here. He might not know what it is exactly yet, but he’s not going to let a little fear get in his way.

 

~o~

 

**Day 9:** Questions to be Answered

It turns out that Yuuri had unknowingly discovered a hidden attribute of SAO sword skills: you could create your own skill and style. The general motions to activate the **[sword skills]** were pre-programed into the system but functioned more as a guide than a limit.

 

When Yuuri had fought against the **[Yggdrasil Boss]** , he had unknowingly activated this hidden aspect of the game system, allowing him to use a higher-level backhand slash even while being in an unconventional position. The game took into account what you, as the player, perceived as possible and evolved to find a way for you to accomplish it.

 

At least that’s what Kirito had tried to explain to Yuuri in much more complex and confusing programming language. Yuuri figured that Kirito’s admiration of Kayaba Akihiko must be as large as his for Viktor if he can gush this much about “the genius of the man who made an ever-evolving system.”

 

Yuuri understood what it was like to want to talk with someone about your passion but not having anyone really there to share it with. So he was more than willing to listen to Kirito rant and rave about his idol’s achievements and--even though he couldn’t understand everything--he commented often and tried to learn more so that one day he could contribute.

 

It was while Kirito was busy developing his own style of fighting (under Yuuri’s occasional guidance), that Yuuri realized they had been working together for almost a week now.

 

They had both acquired what they wanted days ago, before they had even entered the forest outside **[Caefall]** town. Kirito had gotten experience with the party system through training with Ryuu and Yuuri had learned the basics of the game. They were both learning how to incorporate their new styles into their fighting but Kirito really didn’t need Yuuri’s help. He could improve on his own without problem.

 

There was no reason for the two of them to stay together anymore.

 

And yet, they never talked about going their separate ways, about ending the party. Day after day, they logged in during the same hours and fought in the fields until they were both worn out. If the other was ever late, they waited for the other to show up before continuing their journey together.

 

There was an easy silence between them, but the more he thought about it, the more Yuuri needed an answer.

 

_(Is Kirito my friend?)_

 

~o~

 

**Day 10:** Friendship Requests

It had hurt when the notice that Kirito had disband the party appeared before him.

 

Objectively, he knew that it was necessary. Kirito had added new players to their party when they had joined in on the First-Floor boss fight. As the instigator and party leader, Kirito had to disband the entire party in order to release all of the players--including Yuuri--in one click.

 

Yuuri knew that the dissolution of the party wasn’t because of him--that Kirito didn’t include Yuuri in the disbandment because he didn’t like Yuuri--but that link between them was all Yuuri had to reassure him that Kirito wasn’t leaving.

 

Now, standing beside his former party member on the second floor, watching the other beta-testers scatter about the new town, Yuuri has no such lifeline to grab. He doesn’t even know if he should reach out in the first place. Kirito didn’t need him. If anything he is holding him back and he would be better off without him. He should just tell him to leave now and save himself the pain of rejection--

 

**Invite!**

**Kirito has invited you to join his party!**

**Do you accept?**

**Accept**              **Decline**

 

Kirito shuffled a little on his feet, one arm raised and scratching behind his neck, eyes aimed upward and away from Yuuri. His open menu window alerting Yuuri that the invite in front of himself as not an illusion and that Kirito was still waiting for Yuuri’s answer. That Kirito was leaving the decision up to Yuuri.

 

Yuuri pressed **[Accept]** without a second thought.

 

Yuuri saw more than heard the soft sigh Kirito released when he received his acceptance. As Kirito’s shoulders relaxed (the tension he had not know was there dissipating), Yuuri realized that he was not the only one who hadn’t know how to express what he wanted to say. How to put his feelings, hopes, and worries into words.

 

Kirito had bared his heart in that request, had left himself open to be rejected and hurt while Yuuri was just going to walk away out of fear of the unknown.

 

Suddenly, Yuuri’s worries and struggles seemed so small in comparison. He felt the need to respond--to reach out to the person he so dearly wanted as a friend. He needed to put his own heart on the line.

 

Yuuri doesn’t know exactly what this means, what has changed, but he feels like this is the correct thing to do. He wonders if this is what it means to make your own friend.

 

Yuuko had crashed into his life and Takeshi had come along with her as the years passed ( _and he would never dream of replacing them for anything_ ), but this was different. Kirito and Yuuri had meet with no outside force directing them; no meddling Minako-sensei trying to get him to be more social, no common interest between them except for a chance meeting in a Virtual game.

 

They had no reason to get along, no obligation to share anything about themselves and no reason to care about a flimsy virtual friendship in any capacity.

 

Maybe the Kirito in front of Yuuri is not exactly the same as he is in real life, but then again Yuuri has no room to complain there. Ryuu is different from Yuuri, stronger, cooler, brighter, **better.** He is everything that Yuuri wishes he could be. In the beginning he had set up Ryuu to be like the Viktor he read about and watched on a two-dimensional screen. But after spending time with Kirito, after he acknowledged a part of Yuuri that existed in Ryuu, Yuuri had let some pieces of himself shine through. The parts that he usually suppressed in his daily life.

 

(And, maybe it was just Yuuri’s imagination, but he thinks that when he did, Kirito started to show some of himself as well.)

 

As fate would have it, the small fragments of themselves that they revealed fit together, one complimenting the other. They weren’t perfect for each other, not soulmates or anything like that, but he could feel something growing, something filling a hole inside himself when he spent time with Kirito training, fighting, adventuring, **laughing...living.**

 

He is suddenly reminded of an interesting quote from an article he had once read online: “Everything you want is on the other side of fear.”

 

Yuuri is afraid. Afraid that if he shows more of himself, if he places too much faith in this virtual stranger, he will be broken beyond all repair.

 

But Yuuri wants this. Wants a friend that he made after he found out about his passions, his problems, his anxiety. Someone who liked him in spite of it.

 

So he takes the leap and sends a friendship request to Kirito that seems so small and insignificant compared to the scope of the emotions and thoughts fueling it.

 

Kirito accepts.

 

~o~

 

**Day 10 - 13:** Careless Days

Reformed party and new friendship in place, Kirito and Yuuri wasted no more time clearing the fields surrounding the main city of the second floor, **[Urbus]**.

 

The second floor was a mostly flat, grassy savanna, the horizon only broken by the occasional boulder and mountain that rose up randomly. **[Urbus]** itself was built out of an excavated mountain, buildings and landmarks carved out of the remaining bedrock to create a rocky metropolis similar in appearance to the ancient civilizations of the Egyptians and Mayans.

 

While beautiful, Yuuri found that he liked the western and Roman architecture of the first floor better and was more than happy to explore the grassland surroundings rather than the city itself. The savanna was vast and wide, the warm winds constantly sweeping over the field, whipping Ryuu’s snowy hair around wildly. Not for the first time, Yuuri was grateful for his foresight in avoiding his initial outrageously long hair.

 

In the distant south of the floor, there was a large mountain--silhouette stark black against the evening sunset--and Kirito had suggested they make that their first destination goal. It took them about three days to reach the mountain, Kirito often asking to stop and experiment with his original sword style. Yuuri admits that it seemed rather strange to hold your sword behind you, leaving your front wide open to attack, but Kirito was making it work somehow, for the most part.

 

However, his raven haired partner had a nasty habit of enacting completely idiotic schemes all in the name of leveling up. More than a few times, his partner would overestimate his skill and would end up shattering before Yuuri’s eyes, leaving him to deal with the aftermath alone.

 

Which usually resulted in Yuuri fleeing at his top speed and consuming copious amounts of recovery potions to make it back to the closest safe area where Kirito would always be waiting and laughing his ass off at the sight of Yuuri running away from mobs of **[Jagged Worms]** , **[Red Spotted Beetles]** , and **[Storm Hornets]**.

.

.

.

(He would always forgive him though, especially when his friend reimbursed his potion stock and showed him new places to eat on the various floors they would come to visit.)

 

_(Yuuri was happy to find that he could eat as much as he wanted here and he would not gain any weight.)_

 

~o~

 

**Day 13:** To Know My Own Heart

Having cleared the fields leading up to the distant mountain, their party of two decided to stop in the small town of **[Marome]** , that rested at the foot of the colossal hill.

 

Yuuri wanted to spend their last two hours before logging out exploring the hill, but in one of his rare moments of logic, Kirito had explained that it would be a waste of time to start up the mountain if they were just going to have to return a few hours later.

 

So they had entered the nearby fields and leveled up by Farming the spawning **[Bulbous Bow]**. They had met a few players while out on the fields and had moved on to leave them to their own hunting.

 

While returning to town after successfully reaching level 15, the two chanced upon a teenage girl about to be crushed under a stampede of **[Trembling Ox]**.

 

The two of them had made quick work of the mob and had escorted the young woman back to town. They kept a idle chatter going, more for the sake of the newcomer than themselves, but Yuuri’s mind was elsewhere.

 

While offering a hand to help the female player off the ground, Yuuri recalled with fondness all of the times Yuuko had helped him stand up after flubbing a jump, all the times Yuuri had offered a hand to a fallen child as they sniffled and cried. No matter how many times they fell, both Yuuri and those children would always resume their skating not moments later; pain forgotten and smile once again free and _burning_ with happiness.

 

He had fallen hard--harder than he ever had before. That performance had shook him to his very core. Yuuri had been in so much pain, such soul-searing agony, but he had refused to get up, refused the hands reaching for him, waiting for him to grasp them. He had just wallowed in self-pity on the floor, immobile. But now, for the first time in so long…

 

Yuuri wanted to get up again.

 

~o~

 

That night, Yuuri snuck out of his house--Vicchan silent and present at his heels--and walked towards the ice rink, each step filled with resolve and determination.

 

In the cold and dark rink, alone and quiet except for his lightly panting companion, Yuuri allowed himself to dance across the ice. He finally performed the program he had created with Minako and Yuuko and the Nishigori’s; the program he had dedicated to his love of the ice and skating and dance--to the people who had given his great loves to him.

 

Yuuri skated the program that his fear had stolen from him.

 

He skates that night and for the first time in months it didn’t hurt.

 

~o~

 

**Day 14:** The Old Man’s Quest

Yuuri’s hatred of mountain tunnels and caves properly begins on the day that Kirito found a hole in the ground during their journey up the mountain.

 

“Hmmm. Suspicious…”

 

He has heard that tone and words enough times by now that dread and horror isn’t the first thing that flashes down Yuuri’s spine. No, what he feels is a splendid mix of righteous anger and resigned exasperation.

 

“Kirito, no. I know that face. We are **not** jumping down that hole.”

 

“Ryuu, it is a mysterious tunnel in the middle of a gigantic mountain. It could be the entrance to the floor boss!”

 

“Which is exactly why we shouldn’t go in there when there is only two of us!”

 

“No, that means we should go so that we can get the rare drops before everyone else!”

 

“What good are rare items if we die while we’re down there?! Even if you manage to get anything down there, you could lose them as a fine for the death penalty!”

 

_Their glaring contests,_ Yuuri thinks a little sardonically, _could be things of legends._

 

They must make quite a sight, two older teens facing at each other--stubbornness and pride etched in every line and gesture of their body--as they attempt to argue and stare the other into submission.

 

_This is going to take a while. Kirito hardly ever gives up once he gets an idea in his head--_

 

“Fine…”

 

_\--huh?_

 

Not wanting to waste the gift of persuasion from whatever lucky star just graced him with it’s presence, Yuuri quickly aimed to get Kirito back on track towards the top of the mountain.

 

“ _Thank you_! Now let’s get--”

 

“...I’ll just go and scout it out myself.”

 

“--back to climbing the mountain--wait, what?”

 

_(Hello~ hello~ This is your conscious speaking. If something seems too good to be true, you should probably run. Because it_ **_definitely_ ** _is.)_

 

“I’ll be right back.” Kirito accesses the crater with narrowed eyes and prepares to jump into the dark void.

 

“W-what?! No, Kirito!” Firmly ignoring the (sound) advice of his conscious, Yuuri tries to stop Kirito by grabbing onto his long-sleeve linen shirt.

 

Fate and Lady Luck obviously against them, at the moment Yuuri grabbed the raven’s arm, Kirito’s leg caught on an uprooted tree root that had been hidden under the fallen leaves of the vegetation around them. If that was all that happened, the two more than likely would have been able to recover, but of course that didn’t happen. For you see, it seemed Coincidence and Mother Nature felt left out and decided to send a great gust of wind from the plains below, finally succeeding in knocking both Kirito and Yuuri clean off their feet and into the waiting chasm.

 

Yuuri could only watch as the blood drained from their faces in muted horror as gravity did it's intended job.

 

“Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!”

 

“Nooooooo--!!!”

 

~o~

 

The red flashing in Yuuri’s HP bar does little to explain just how _done_ with _everything_ Yuuri is when they finally reach the bottom of the long, winding, **_painful_ ** tunnel.

 

_(Is there a name for the fear of tunnels? If there isn’t, Yuuri will_ **_make_ ** _one if he has to.)_

 

“Urghhh...okay, I’ll admit….not my best idea. But, hey, at least we are still alive, right?”

 

“Kirito…” Yuuri doesn’t even bother lifting his head from where he is lying face first in the dirt.

 

“Yeah, Ryuu?”

 

“... _Shut_ ... _up…_ ”

 

“...okay.”

 

“This is _all_ your fault.”

 

“...I know.”

 

“Next time I say not to jump. You. **Don’t** . **_Jump_ **. Got it?”

 

“.......Right…..”

 

“...”

 

“...”

 

“You’re going to jump anyway aren’t you?”

 

“...yeah, probably. Sorry.”

 

“Urghhhhhhh….”

 

~o~

 

When they find the old man’s hut at the end of a long rising staircase it is a much welcomed change from the dark and damp underground caverns they had been traversing for the past three hours.

 

When a quest activates and the elderly NCP announces that he will teach the two of us how to obtain the **[Martial Arts]** extra skill, Yuuri can feel Kirito rising in smug satisfaction next to him.

 

Before Kirito can utter a single word, Yuuri asks the NCP if the path they took was the only way to reach the top.

 

“There are many pathways to reach my humble home, however the road you both traversed to reach me is both the most arduous and taxing,” was its intelligent answer.

 

Yuuri let his smile and silence speak for him as he turned to a contrite and grimacing Kirito.

 

~o~

 

**Day 16:** What These Moments Mean

It takes two days for both of them to break the boulder with their bare hands, obtaining the **[Martial Arts]** skill.

 

Kirito had naturally finished faster and took great pleasure in commenting on Yuuri’s whiskered cheeks, laughing unrestrainedly whenever a particular taunt made Yuuri blush like a tomato and miss the boulder.

 

As frustrating as is it was to for Kirito to have fun at his expense, Yuuri felt that he enjoyed these moments of careless chatter and jokes even more than he liked fighting side-by-side in the fields.

 

Though he finds both of them fun now, especially when his friend is there to make the experience even better.

 

Maybe spending so much time in SAO, day after day, had been a mistake. Maybe he should have just focused on his skating and he would have eventually left his slump. Maybe he could have done something else, something that people would have expected him to like and not a fighting game.

 

Maybe there was a lot of things Yuuri could have done differently.

 

But Yuuri will never regret it, will never think that he wasted his time. Because he made a friend here. Yuuri met Kirito here. Yuuri had regained the ability to laugh, breath, _live_ here.

 

Here, in the beautiful, exciting, and amazing world of Sword Art Online.

 

And he wouldn’t give up a single second for anything in the world.

 

~o~

 

**Day 30:** A Promise Between Friends

Panting heavily, Yuuri looked to his left as he wiped off the virtual sweat cascading down his face.

 

Sword in hand, Kirito appeared much the same, smiling as the announcement of the 10th floor boss’s defeat reached the players gathered in the large black and white marbled boss room.

 

Cheers from the formed raid party rose and echoed through the dungeon halls and the tunnel leading to 11th floor of Aincrad.

 

They had cleared the 10th floor just one hour before the beta-test was set end.

 

As the game’s top players, Kirito and Yuuri were basically strong armed by the other beta-testers into opening the doors to the newly opened floor.

 

Together, they opened the thick stone gates and stepped out into the cool winds and sunset lit city of the 11th floor.

 

The floor seemed to be composed mostly of connecting bluffs and pathways between shimmering lakes of water. Platforms rose up from the large bodies of water in the distance, catching and reflecting the setting sun, like the searchlights of coastal lighthouses.

 

The city itself had large rivers of water passing through man-made canals. Along the waterways, structures of blues, reds, and gold rose high into the sky, each stretching 10 to 20 stories high.

 

The largest structure in the water metropolis was most notably the gigantic limestone, brick bell tower, standing tall and proud in the heart of the city.

 

As the other players started up an impromptu party to celebrate the last hour didn’t really appeal to him--despite various requests to join--Yuuri decide to spend his remaining time exploring the quiet sunset city that vaguely reminded him of his coastal hometown.

 

Following without a word, Kirito seemed to have the same idea.

 

As the sounds of the party grew distant, Yuuri found his feet somehow guiding him to the bell tower and swiftly ascending the spiraling staircase.

 

Gazing over the town and surround fields that he would never get a chance to explore, Yuuri found himself asking dangerous questions.

 

_Is this the end? The beta is over and now there really is no reason at all for this friendship to continue. What if it didn’t mean the same thing to Kirito? What if Yuuri was just deluding himself into thinking that this was more than a partnership of convenience? Or worse, that Kirito had stayed because of pity?_

 

But as usual, while Yuuri doubts and worries, Kirito has no problem giving Yuuri the lifeline he needs.

 

“The water is so still it almost looks like grass.”

 

Kirito is looking out at the water plains in the distance, avoiding Yuuri’s questioning gaze.

 

“It reminds me of the view you see in the fields west of the **[Town of Beginnings]**.”

 

Now Yuuri is getting worried. The view looks nothing like the grassy hills and steep slopes of the first floor.

 

Concerned, Yuuri opens his mouth to ask exactly what Kirito is talking about only for Kirito to continue, stressing his next sentence carefully.

 

“It would be a nice place to meet next time.”

 

Yuuri blinks dumbly for a moment, unsure of exactly what Kirito meant by that.

 

_What “next time?” This is the end, the last day. There won’t even be a west field for us to meet at come tomorrow morning. How could we possible meet again--oh. Oh._

 

Over the past month, Yuuri can confidently say he has learned quite a bit about Kirito. He is strong and loyal, a bit of a game junky, and a total fan of Kayaba Akihiko. He takes reckless gambles with a side of ill odds as a hurdle to overcome. He is a bit of a miser when it comes to spending money on things like lodging and food, but if it will get him a new item, he will give it away without a thought. He is terrifyingly perceptive when he wants to be and occasionally doubles as a master manipulator.

 

Kirito is kind.

 

But more than that, he is awkward.

 

Awkward like Yuuri; unable to put their feelings and desires into words, choosing rather to suffer in silence and bear their burdens alone.

 

But for all that they are the same, Kirito has the bravery that Yuuri has lacked for far too long in his life. The bravery to reach out and leave yourself open to be hurt.

 

With his falsely carefree comment, Kirito told Yuuri that he still wants to be his friend. That when the real game goes live, he will be waiting for Yuuri just like always.

 

Despite their bond being formed in a virtual reality, Kirito is asking for friendship. For _Yuuri’s_ friendship. And somehow Yuuri knows with perfect clarity, that this is not just a simple **[Friendship Request]** sent over a digital system to link the avatars of Ryuu and Kirito, but an actual request for the tentative bond that Yuuri and the person that lives within Kirito have spent the past thirty days slowly cultivating.

 

His shock and happiness is too much to bear and he just wants to bury himself in under layers of pillows and blankets.

 

He can leave Kirito’s answer in the air, can give some careless response that promises nothing of himself. Kirito had given him that option. But that is not who Yuuri wants to be, who he is slowly becoming.

 

So he answers in the way he only can with Kirito.

 

“I don’t know if I want to deal with such a suicidal maniac a second time.”

 

In other words, snarky and littered with double meanings.

 

Kirito turns sharply to look at Yuuri in shock and maybe a little bit of betrayal, but when he sees Yuuri’s tilted smile and laughing eyes, it not long before his own trademark smirk lights up his face, eyes reflecting a silent gratitude.

 

"Seriously, do you know how many times you almost killed me? Really, look at all the stress lines I have from your stupid decisions.”

 

_(A call was made and someone answered. Unlike before, two lost souls would not begin their journey alone and confused, for two very different paths were linked prematurely by fate. A friendship formed through mere chance and unforeseen circumstances would change both their lives for better and for worse.)_

 

The bell above them began to chime the hour. After seven rings, this world would end.

 

“How cruel. And here I thought you liked being thrown into holes and nearly mauled by rabid bunnies. My mistake.”

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(Six more rings.)_

 

“Ah, but I suppose that someone has to be there to act as your voice of reason. And I have lots of practice saving your reckless ass, so I might as well save the rest of the players from your insanity.”

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(Five more rings.)_

 

“How noble of you. Am I supposed to be thankful for this?”

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(Four more rings.)_

 

The two are smiling and smirking as they face each other in a perfect parallel of their first meeting.

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(Three.)_

 

Raising their arms in silent agreement, the two knock their fists together.

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(Two.)_

 

“See ya in the live game.”

 

“Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

 

**_G-GGONNG!!!_ **

 

_(One.)_

 

The beta-test ends.

 

~o~

 

**July - November 7**

Over the past five months since the Beta-test ended, Yuuri has started the process of reclaiming his life. He started skating and dancing again with new determination and resolve, training hard and long into the night.

 

It no longer hurt to stand on his beloved ice and he didn’t feel the need to crumple in shame when he watched Viktor debut in his first Senior Grand Prix season, seizing Bronze in Skate America, in late October, and Silver in the Rostelecom Cup, just one day before Yuuri was set to enter the newly released version of Sword Art Online.

 

He became aware of just how disconnected he had become when he had let his first performance get to him.

 

Lacking the constant companionship and conversations with Kirito alerted Yuuri to the fact that he had become increasingly distant from his family and friends after he hit his slump. He made an effort to reconnect with them all, to try and let they know how sorry he was for cutting them out they way he had.

 

If they were shocked by his newfound assertiveness they didn’t let it show. Or in some cases they were just too happy that “Yuuri is back!” to even consider being upset with him.

 

They had not pushed Yuuri and had instead waited for him to come on his own. Their unwavering trust and faith in Yuuri’s strength is something he thinks would have taken him much longer to see if he hadn’t lived in SAO and seen for himself what he could become.

 

He is not healed, knows that he probably will never be the same, but he feels that maybe one day he can be better, can grow, and achieve something.

 

He is still not any closer to his dream, no better an athlete than when he started the game. He is still mediocre, awkward, and lacking in so many areas. Still nothing more than ‘Yuuri.’

 

But he had caught a glimpse of it in that world. A glimpse of a stronger, braver him. And he can’t wait to get it back, to run side by side through dangerous and exciting adventures with a friend that he alone was able to make.

 

On November 7th, Yuuri climbs onto his bed in barely restrained happiness, brand new NerveGear securely fastened around his head.

 

Lying down, Yuuri addressed his ever faithful friend.

 

“Okay, Vicchan. I’m going in again. See you when I get back! And then I’ll tell you everything, I promise. Just like always.”

 

And just like always, Vicchan curls up beside Yuuri on his small bed, standing guard and waiting until his beloved master returns to him once more.

 

Head resting against his stacked pillows, Yuuri turns his eyes upward as he gazes through the visor of his NerveGear.

 

The poster of Viktor’s Junior World Prix performance plastered on his ceiling is the last thing he sees before he closes his eyes with a smile on his face.

 

**"[Link Start!]”**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that curtains for the prologue. Time to move on to the next arc.
> 
> So some key points that I feel I should address before moving on are:
> 
> (1) This whole story (until further notice) is told through Yuuri's point of view alone. And hopefully from this chapter, you can see that Yuuri is not the most objective person when he thinks about himself or others. What Yuuri takes for granted may not be what is actually happening and what he thinks other players are feeling is not always true. At the same time, there will always be a lot of things going on behind the scenes and in the heads of other characters that Yuuri is not understanding correctly or even aware of.
> 
> (2) My headcanon for Kirito is that he is a very mature and intelligent pre-teen that doesn't know how to interact with anyone unless they are female (in which case he treats them like his little sister) or they are at least 10 years older than him (such as Klein). Aside for his brief time with the Black Cat guild, Kirito spent zero time with any males around his own physical age. Yuuri, likewise has been shown in the series and this prologue to have no meaningful connections with anyone within 3 to 2 years of himself. (As awesome as Takeshi is, I personally think that if Yuuko wasn't there, he never would have come to see Yuuri as a friend.) So both Yuuri and Kirito are both awful at making male friends their own age and it is shown here in how they very slowly manage to put their friendship into actual words despite them both actually being friends in their own minds for way longer.
> 
> (3) Kirito's adventures are Kirito's adventures. While Yuuri presence will have significant affects on SAO and Kirito's development, there are somethings that are necessary for Kirito as a person that Yuuri will have no control over or ability to stop. He will change things, but he will never take Kirito's place in SAO.
> 
> (4) Sword skills and styles. I will admit that I have not read the light novels for SAO and much of my knowledge is based off of the anime and whatever information I can find through online forums. I will try my best not to break any real rules of SAO, but if I do, it is for a reason. As far as I know, there is not set style of sword play that a player has to follow in the game. This is why there are so many different type of fighters the higher you go in levels and how those who are lower leveled usually stick to the same basic movements of slashing and swinging a sword around. My head-canon is that as long as you can visualize it, you can make it happen (within certain parameters). This is why Kirito was able to develop his trademark style and Asuna is able to due continuous back flips that she probably would never be able to do in reality. Yuuri is able to incorporate high-level movement and flexibility into his own style very easily because he already has a firm image in his mind of exactly what he can do physically. While anyone with a firm mental image will be able to eventually do what Yuuri can, they will have to focus much harder to maintain the abilities that are second-nature to Yuuri.
> 
> This is all I can really think of right now, but if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment and I will try to answer as best I can.
> 
> The prologue is now over and I will be diving straight into the main story of SAO from the word go.
> 
> Thank you to all who have read up till now! Please look forward to the next installment of the "Of Swords and Skates" series, "Of Blades and Ice."

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to the first part of my first ever fanfiction series, "Of Swords and Skates." This is going to be a long work and it will be divided into multiple parts, but I hope that you will stick with me for the whole ride!
> 
> I always wanted to write a fanfiction story of my own, but I always told myself that I would not do so unless I had a beginning, middle, and end mostly planned out. This is the first story that has managed to make it to completion in my head so I have decided to try my hand at giving back a little bit of what fanfiction from other writers and this site in general has given me over the years.
> 
> This story is basically coming from the knowledge that Yuuri's is said to consider gaming his hobby. When reading a synopsis for Ordinal Scale a few weeks ago, I considered what would happen if the technological advances happened a little early. Take into account that I am currently into anything and everything Yuri!! on Ice related and this story was born!
> 
> I have a pretty clear idea of how this story is going to go, but I would love to hear everyone's opinion and comments on things that they think I could do better or things that they would like to see happen. (You never know. What you comment on may very well be something that I was debating putting in XD.) 
> 
> I should mention that I will NOT be focusing on the romance/relationship between Yuuri and Viktor for a long while, but I wanted any readers to know from the beginning what they are in store for. It would be sad for someone to be very invested in my story and then be upset by the romance that WILL occur later on. Likewise, for someone who will eventually start reading for the romance, I don't want them stranded a couple of arcs in when I start actively using the Viktuuri tags only to not understand the placement and timeline that will change due to SAO influences. 
> 
> That being said, once again I welcome you to the "Of Swords and Skates" series and I hope that you will look forward to it and enjoy it as much as I currently am!
> 
> CodeAria


End file.
